Where Loyalties Lie
by Ultimate Queen of Cliffies
Summary: "She always so loved the feeling of his arms around her. It was like for a moment, everything – all the bad things, the worries, the hate, and the fear – melted away, leaving just them." Theirs was a story of friendship and hate; of sacrifice and love. Fiyeraba.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Here it is, then: my new Wicked multichap. Carlie, thank you so much for helping me with the title! I really love this one :).**

**The picture is not Willemijn Verkaik, for a change; it's Danna Paola, the Mexican Elphie whom I got to know through Humole (thanks for that ^_^) and I've really grown to love her!**

**Enjoy and please review!**

* * *

**Chapter 1.**

"Elphie?"

Elphaba froze in the middle of her movements. Ever so slowly, she turned around to face the girl – the _woman_ – that had once been her best friend and was now probably one of her greatest enemies.

The fact that Glinda had called her 'Elphie' gave her some hope, though. Maybe the blonde did not hate her… much.

"Glinda," she said, sounding breathless. She tried to look unfazed, chin raised and one hand on her hip. She didn't feel calm at all, though. Her heart was pounding in her throat. Would Glinda call the guards on her? What if she did? Her eyes flicked to her broom, leaning against the wall – would she be able to make it over there and fly out of the Throne Room before the guards could get here?

Carefully, she looked back at the blonde standing on the other side of the room. Glinda's eyes were wide and filled with tears, and she pressed a hand to her mouth. "Oh, Elphie… it really is you!"

And then she suddenly crossed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around the green girl in a tight hug.

Elphaba tensed up, not having expected that at all; but then she relaxed and hugged Glinda back.

"I'm so glad you're alive!" Glinda sniffled, burying her face in the taller girl's shoulder. "I was so worried about you… it's been so long. I heard all these horrendible stories, about you saving Animals and flying all over Oz on that creepy broomstick you left on the day we met the Wizard, and about the Gale Force searching everywhere for you… I feared so many times that they got you! Every time I heard about a new prisoner being brought to Southstairs, I was so scared it could be you!"

Elphaba forced herself to smile. "You know me," she said. "I'm not so easily caught."

Glinda laughed tearily. "I know." She embraced Elphaba again. "I'm so happy to see that you're alright."

"I thought…" Elphaba looked down. "I thought you'd hate me," she confessed.

Glinda was shocked. "Hate you? What? Why?" she demanded in a high-pitched voice that nearly brought tears to Elphaba's eyes, it sounded so familiar. She hadn't even realised how badly she had missed her best friend and roommate over the past two years until now.

"Because I left you." Elphaba closed her eyes for a moment. "I'm sorry, Glin. I just… left you here. Alone. I abandoned you."

"It was for a good cause," Glinda said. "I don't blame you, Elphie. I never did. If anything, I just… felt guilty because I didn't go with you."

"It's a good thing you didn't." Elphaba shook her head. "It's not an easy life I'm living," she admitted. "I always have to be on guard, lest someone recognise me. The Gale Force are sniffing my trail like a bunch of bloodhounds, and if I'm not careful, they'll find me. I always have to make sure they can't trace my steps, because if I don't, it's not just me that could be in danger, but a whole lot of Animals, too." She looked at Glinda. "I'm glad you didn't come with me," she said. "I really am. At least I know you're safe here."

Glinda took her friend in. At first, she had thought Elphaba looked good; much the same like she had looked back at Shiz. Her hair was still long, slightly wavy, and black. Her skin was still the same shade of green. Her eyes were still chocolate brown and ever vigilant.

Now that she looked closer, however, she could see that two years on the run had taken their toll on her friend. She could see some of Elphaba's bones poking the fabric of her dress – that was how skinny she was. Her hair wasn't as shiny as before and there were dark circles under her eyes. She looked exhausted.

Her eyes were still sparkling, though.

"Elphie…" she said softly. "Are you okay?"

Elphaba nodded. "I am," she said. "Really. I'm doing what I've always wanted to do now – I'm making a difference. I'm helping the Animals. I won't say it's not hard, but I'm okay, Glin. I really am."

Glinda suddenly felt a rush of pride and affection for her friend. "Okay. That's good," was all she said, but she knew her eyes told her friend everything else and Elphaba smiled at her before turning.

"I should probably get out of here." The raven-haired witch crossed the room and picked up her broomstick before turning back to face Glinda. "Before anyone else finds me here and decides to call the guards on me."

Glinda nodded. "You should." She hesitated for a moment. "Elphie… one more thing. It's about Fiyero." She wasn't sure how to tell her friend this, but she had to bring it up. "He…"

"He's alright," Elphaba cut her off before the blonde could even ask her question. "And safe. If the idiot listened to me and stayed put, that is," she added, scowling a little.

Glinda's eyes widened. "Really?" She shook her head. "So he found you, then," she concluded in wonder.

"Actually, I found him." Elphaba let out a sound that was something between a huff and a laugh. "He should have known better than going out roaming the Great Gillikin Forest all by himself to look for me. Dawyn nearly ate him. I only stopped her just in time."

"Dawyn?" Glinda inquired.

"A Jaguar I got to know." Elphaba shrugged. "I tried to send him back, of course – Fiyero, not Dawyn – but he refused to go. The moron said he'd been looking for me ever since he found out I was gone and now that he found me, he would not leave me again."

Glinda knew for a fact that that was true.

After the day Doctor Dillamond had been removed from campus, Fiyero had started acting strange towards his blonde girlfriend, and eventually the truth had come out: he didn't love her anymore. He wasn't sure he ever had. He was in love with her best friend and roommate, and he wouldn't act on it because he thought Elphaba would never like him back, anyway, but he thought it wasn't fair to continue being together with Glinda if it was her roommate he really wanted.

She'd been upset, obviously, but she had gotten over it; and when Elphaba had, after a few weeks, reluctantly and shyly admitted to the blonde that she kind of liked Glinda's ex-boyfriend – after lots of prying from Glinda, obviously – the blonde had taken it on herself to get the two together… but then Elphaba herself had slipped up. She, Glinda, and Fiyero were talking about something – or a lot of things, really – when the subject of 'stupidest thing you have ever done' came up and Elphaba had suddenly blurted, "Falling in love with my best friend's boyfriend."

Since she had only ever had one best friend – and said best friend had only ever had one serious boyfriend since Elphaba knew her – it was pretty obvious who she was talking about.

She had clasped her hands over her mouth in horror and Glinda was sure she would have given anything to make the floor swallow her in that moment, but then Fiyero had asked, "Is that true?", with this really intense look in his eyes that Glinda found adorable, and Elphaba had admitted that it was. Glinda had proceeded to discreetly leave the two alone and had watched from behind the corner, silently squealing, as her friends had shared their first kiss.

When Elphaba got her invitation to meet the Wizard, Fiyero had wanted to come, but she had apologetically told him that she was taking Glinda.

"She's my best friend," she'd said. "She's never been to the City before and she's always wanted to go there… and I've been neglecting her a little lately. Don't worry, it'll only be a few days."

He had reluctantly agreed and had come to see them off. Glinda remembered that day so vividly, it was like it had happened yesterday. Nessa being upset over Boq. Elphaba wanting to go after her sister, but Glinda stopping her. Glinda awkwardly standing with her back towards the couple as they said goodbye – a long, elaborate, many-kisses-and-hugs involving goodbye, if she remembered correctly. And then she and Elphaba had left for the City and things had gone wrong from there.

She hadn't been able to fly off with Elphaba. She just couldn't. But she had felt ashamed and guilty from the moment Elphaba disappeared out of the window and out of sight. The Wizard and Morrible had offered her the position of Grand Vizier at the Palace once she would graduate, and she had accepted; but she had returned to Shiz in tears, upset and confused and lonely. Fiyero had been there to welcome them and she had just thrown herself at him and sobbed into his shoulder, leaving him sick with worry over Elphaba for nearly half an hour before she could get herself together enough to tell him what had happened.

Immediately afterwards, he had started making plans. After a few weeks, when he had assured himself of the fact that Glinda and Nessarose would be alright – Elphaba would never forgive him if he hadn't done that and he knew it – he had left Shiz to look for the green girl. Glinda hadn't heard from him since and frankly, she had feared the worst.

Glinda smiled. "So you're still together, then?"

She didn't miss the way Elphaba's eyes softened at that and Glinda's smile widened. She recognised that look from back at Shiz. It was the same look Elphaba had always had whenever Fiyero was either mentioned or nearby.

A lot had changed, she realised, but some things never seemed to.

"We are," said Elphaba, a tiny smile playing around her own lips. "We're currently staying at an Animal hideout – the location of which I won't tell even you – and we're… helping, I guess. In any way we can and know how."

Glinda took her friend's hand and squeezed it. "That's great, Elphie."

Elphaba squeezed back. "I'm sorry, Glin… I have to go."

"I know." Glinda took a deep breath in an attempt to keep herself together. Then she hugged the dark-haired witch one last time. "Be safe. And give Fiyero my love."

"I will. You be careful, too – the City can be a dangerous place, despite its apparent safety." Elphaba looked into her friend's eyes. "And be happy," she added softly.

Glinda smiled sadly. "I'll try."

She watched as Elphaba climbed into the window sill, broom in one hand, and stared out over the Emerald City for a brief moment. Her emerald skin was glowing in the fading sunlight and her raven hair whipped around her as the wind swept it up and blew it around her face.

She looked back once. "Goodbye, Glin," she said softly.

Glinda met her gaze. "Goodbye, Elphie."

Then Elphaba mounted her broom and leapt out of the window.

Glinda ran over to it and hung out of the window in order to look down, afraid somehow that Elphaba had just plummeted to her death – it had certainly looked that way.

That wasn't the case, of course. Elphaba was already high up above the clouds, her pointed hat clearly visible against the western sky and her cloak billowing behind her on the wind. Her bone-chilling cackle seemed to echo through the skies, and Glinda could see the people below, in the streets of the Emerald City, stop dead in their tracks and point at the witch flying on her broomstick through the sky.

Glinda smiled and closed the window before leaving the Throne Room like nothing special had occurred there.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Thank you all so much for your wonderful reviews! I'm not really having the best... week, I guess... but they cheered me up immensely :).**

* * *

**Chapter 2.**

"Miss Elphaba!" a small Sparrow that was passing by through the sky sang out. "Miss Elphaba is home!"

Elphaba landed at about the same time, looking up at the small Bird in amusement. "Yes, thank you, Niyé, I think everyone can see that for themselves," she said, but she was smiling. "Next time you might want to announce my return _before _I am already landing."

The Sparrow ducked to peck at Elphaba's hair and she leapt out of the way, chuckling. "I'm just teasing you." She bent closer to Niyé. "Though you might want to let Fiyero know I'm on my way home sooner next time," she said in a stage whisper. "That would save him some lines in his face and a few mini heart attacks."

Niyé grinned. "I'll keep that in mind," he promised, immediately picking up on his promise and flying off to find Fiyero. Elphaba put her broom away and made her way through the Animal village, greeting friends left and right as she searched for the prince as well. They had been staying in this particular village for about two months and she had gotten to know nearly everyone living in it.

Everyone knew her, too. The word about Elphaba spread like wildfire, among the Animals as much as among the humans, though for different reasons. While the people shut their doors or reached for their rifles whenever they caught sight of her, the Animals would open their doors wide and celebrate her mere presence. It still made her a little – okay, _very_ – uncomfortable, but she would be lying if she said she didn't love it. It was nice to be accepted.

She eventually found Fiyero, after being tipped off by Niyé, in the small hospital they had set up. He was tending to a small Bear cub they had found in the woods not long ago, its mother murdered. They were bottle-feeding it and trying their hardest to keep it alive, but neither Elphaba nor either of the two doctors living in the village was sure he was going to make it. Fiyero, however, had always had a firm belief that he would. Elphaba hoped he was right.

When she entered, he looked up and smiled – trying to look casual, but she could see the immense relief in his eyes. The fact that he always tried to hide it, because he didn't want her to know how much he worried, only made her love him even more. She knew he worried, of course, and he probably knew that she knew; but he still tried not to let it show, afraid of smothering her.

"Hey," he said, moving away from the small Bear and taking her outside so they could talk without disturbing any of the patients.

"Hey." She looked up at him and when she saw the look on his face, she leant up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his, winding her arms around his neck.

He seemed surprised, but his arms immediately closed around her waist and he kissed her back, holding her tightly. When she finally pulled away and rested her forehead against his, he let out a throaty chuckle. "What was that for?"

"Because I love you," she said, closing her eyes. She always so loved the feeling of his arms around her. It was like for a moment, everything – all the bad things, the worries, the hate, and the fear – melted away, leaving just _them_. Just love, and warmth, and that delicious scent that always seemed to hang around him and that was a mix of wood, grass, and something distinctly Fiyero. "Do I need any other reason?"

He shook his head and kissed her again, softly. "Of course you don't."

She felt the way his fingers dug into her waist, a little harder than usual; and as she rested her head against his shoulder, she concluded, "You were worried."

"I am always worried."

"Let me rephrase that: you were more worried than usual."

He shook his head in amazement. "How do you always do that?" he demanded. "Know what I'm thinking or feeling without me saying anything?"

She smirked. "It's a gift." She wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed softly. "Don't worry so much, Yero. I can take care of myself. I'm fine. Nothing happened. Or, well," she corrected herself, "not 'nothing', but nothing bad."

"What did happen, then?" he asked.

She heard the tension in his voice. That was the answer to his earlier question: he didn't _have _to say what he was thinking or feeling, because she could read him like a book. She could hear it in his voice; she could tell by the way he stood, moved, or touched her; and she could see it in his eyes.

"I ran into Glinda," she said.

She could hear a sharp intake of breath from him and she looked up at him, her eyes filled with wonder.

"She doesn't hate me, Yero," she said, still incredulous about that fact. "She… she was worried about me. Us," she corrected herself. "Both of us. She was happy to see that I was alright. We talked for a little while, but I couldn't stay long, obviously… I wish I could have stayed longer." She heaved a sigh. "I missed her, too. So much. I still do. But it's just too dangerous…"

Fiyero dropped a kiss to the top of her head. "I know, sweetheart. I know. But I'm glad you two had a chance to talk, however briefly."

She shook her head, annoyed with herself. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't lose myself in everything that might have been – and wishes don't come true, anyway. We have more important things to worry about." She detached herself from him. "Like how to prevent the Gale Force troops that Niyé saw this morning from finding this village."

"More Gale Force troops?" Fiyero grimaced. "Why are there so many lately? Do you think they're on to us?"

She shrugged helplessly. "If I knew, I'd tell you. But Yero…" It pained her to say this, but she had to. "I think we should leave."

His face softened and she knew that he knew how much this hurt her. He drew her back into his arms. "I think you're right."

She closed her eyes, burying her face in his chest. "I just hate this," she said, her voice muffled. "I don't want to leave. I want to know if the Bear cub survives. I want to know if Niyé passes his final flying test and if Dr. Reng will accept Lilah as his new medicine student – I know she's been dreaming of becoming a doctor for so long already… not to mention the fact that I don't want to pull Dawyn away from the Darners – she really found herself a family in them, and it would kill her to leave them."

"She doesn't have to leave them," Fiyero said, rubbing Elphaba's back softly. "She can stay here, if she chooses to."

Elphaba shook her head. "She won't," she said. "She vowed to protect me with her life after I saved her. No matter how many times I tell her it's okay, that she's free to go, she won't leave my side. Not ever, possibly. Besides, I think she's grown rather fond of both you and me as well. As much as it would kill her to leave the Darner family, I honestly think it would kill her even more to leave us."

She took a deep breath. "But we have no choice. It's not safe anymore. The Gale Force wants Animal hideouts, but they want me more. If I make an appearance somewhere, they'll run there as fast as their legs can carry them, all Animal villages forgotten. It's too dangerous for them if I stay here."

Fiyero nodded. "If you think that's best," he said, "then we'll go." He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and kissed her forehead. "Don't worry, Fae. It'll be okay. And we can always come back to visit… later."

"Later," she agreed. She kissed him one final time before letting go of him and taking a step back. "I'm going to find Dawyn to tell her we're leaving," she said. "Take care of everything you still feel you need to do, and pack your things. We'll leave in the morning."

* * *

"The Wicked Witch of the West was in the Throne Room," Glinda repeated flatly. "Madame, I don't mean to question you, but that sounds ridiculous. She was in the Throne Room and no-one noticed?"

"Well, I wasn't here," the Wizard said with a frown on his face as he tried to come up with a possible explanation. "I did leave the room unattended. It's very well possible that the guards didn't hear her come in."

"But what would she do here?" Glinda asked. "Nothing was stolen, was there?"

She was trying very, very hard to keep her voice steady and even and her face expressionless. Morrible was extremely good at reading people – a little too good, sometimes – and Glinda simply _could not _give anything away about what had really happened in the Throne Room. If Morrible found out she had seen and spoken to Elphaba and not called the Gale Force, the woman would throw her into Southstairs without blinking an eye.

"Not exactly 'stolen', no," said Morrible irritably, pacing up and down the room with her hands behind her back. She was clearly annoyed about the fact that Elphaba had managed to get into the Emerald Palace and out again without so much as being noticed – not until she flew off cackling, anyway.

At Glinda's puzzled look, the Wizard explained, "Elphaba freed the flying Monkeys."

This time, Glinda didn't have to feign her surprise. In the unexpected delight of seeing her best friend again, she had failed to notice that the Monkeys had been gone. Now that she thought about it, she should have known that Elphaba had been there for a reason – she wouldn't endanger her own life like that for nothing, not even just to seek out Glinda and talk to her – but she hadn't even thought of asking why her friend had been there. She'd just been happy that she _was _there.

"So now we have no Wicked Witch," Morrible said angrily, "and no spies. Your Ozness, this is getting out of hand. We need to come up with a plan to catch her, and quickly."

"I agree." The Wizard sighed. "But that's not as easy as it sounds."

All of a sudden, Morrible stopped pacing and turned to look at Glinda.

"You," she said. "You were her roommate. You spent more time with her than anyone. Can't you come up with something?"

Glinda blinked. "What? No." She shook her head. "I have no idea. I mean, I don't know anything about military strategies or how the Gale Force works…"

"But you know _her_," Morrible said impatiently. "Surely you remember a weakness of hers, or something?"

_Fiyero. Fiyero is her greatest weakness. So am I. So is Nessarose. And the Animals. Hurt any of us, and you'll hit her right where it hurts her most._

"A fear, maybe?" the Wizard asked. "Do you remember her being afraid of something?"

_She's afraid of the dark, though she always hides that well. She also doesn't like cramped spaces. She'll never let any of that on, but I spent enough time with her to know exactly what she loves and hates, what she's scared of and what makes her smile. She's my best friend, what else did you expect?_

She didn't say any of those things out loud, though. She would never, ever betray her friend like that. Not for the highest position in Oz and all the money in the world.

Instead, she whispered, "Water."

Morrible frowned. "What?"

"Her skin," Glinda said. "It's not just an unnatural colour; there's more to it. Don't pin me down on this – with all the magic she has now, not to mention the Grimmerie, it's possible she has found a way around it – but back when we were at Shiz, she was allergic to water."

"Water?" The Wizard seemed intrigued.

Morrible looked sceptical. "I've seen her out in the rain once or twice, Miss Glinda. It didn't seem to do anything to her."

"That's because she found a spell in one of the spell books for your Sorcery course," Glinda said. She couldn't believe these lies were all spilling out of her mouth so quickly and so easily. She was much more adept at this than she'd thought. "It only lasts for about ten minutes – enough to get her to class whenever it was raining and to not arouse suspicion with our fellow students, but I saw her back in our room. She accidentally spilt a glass of water on herself once and I saw the burns that left. If you were to dump a bucket of water of her unexpectedly, catching her off-guard so that she can't cast a spell first, I'm sure she won't survive it."

"A water allergy…" Morrible mused. "That _does _explain why she was always in such a hurry whenever it was raining outside."

_Or maybe she was in a hurry because it was _raining outside _and she didn't want to get wet. Isn't everyone in a hurry when it's raining?_

"Intriguing." The Wizard plucked at his moustache. "Water it is."  
"You can't make it rain in all of Oz, though," Glinda quickly interfered, before Morrible could raise her arms and flood the whole land. "There's already water damage in Munchkinland, and it's not much better in Gillikin."

"She won't be there, then," the Wizard reasoned. "If she's allergic to water."

"Last thing I heard, she was heading towards the Vinkus," Glinda said helpfully. She felt rather proud of herself. This way, she could convince Morrible and the Wizard of her own loyalty and keep Elphaba and Fiyero safe at the same time – she was almost certain they wouldn't be in the Vinkus, and even if they were, a little rain wouldn't hurt them. She would be doing a good deed on top of that all – there had been a terrible drought in the Vinkus lately. Fiyero's parents would be grateful.

Morrible sniggered and raised her hands, not questioning the blonde any further.

"Let it rain in the Vinkus, then."


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Here you go! With a cliffy, because, you know, I have a reputation (and a name) to hold up. Heheh.**

**Guest #1: Yes, she's allergic to water in the book, but I usually write her musicalverse :). I think _Ocean's Daughter _was the only exception to that, but that was different.**

**Guest #2: Hihi, thank you so much! ^_^**

* * *

**Chapter 3.**

"You don't have to come with us," said Elphaba. "If you'd rather stay here –"

"Elphaba," the Jaguar cut her off. "No."

"But the Darners –"

"I love the Darners," Dawyn admitted, looking at the Lion family in question. "And I wish we didn't have to go, but I understand why we do, and I'm coming with you. You saved my life, Elphaba. If you hadn't shown up, the Gale Force would have slaughtered me. You even took a spear in your shoulder for me!"

"It was only a small cut."

"It needed stitches," Dawyn reminded her.

Elphaba shrugged. "Not _many _stitches."

Dawyn gave her a death glare and the young witch decided wisely to keep her mouth shut.

"I'm going with you," the Jaguar said again. "Because I owe you my life, and I want to make sure you don't get into any more trouble than is strictly necessary."

"An impossible task," Fiyero muttered under his breath. Elphaba elbowed him none too gently in the side.

"And also because I love you and Fiyero," Dawyn continued, looking at them both, "and I want to stay with you."

Elphaba sighed. "Alright. If you're sure…"

"I'm sure."

The green girl nodded. "Very well, then." She looked up at Fiyero. "Are you ready?"

He placed one hand on her waist. "As ready as I'll ever be, I think."

She sighed. "Yeah… I know what you mean." She watched as Dawyn said goodbye to the Lion family. When she saw that the cubs were crying, she looked away. "Can we go check on the Bear cub one more time?"

"Of course," said Fiyero, guiding her through the streets and to the hospital. Dr. Reng, who was a Hare, and Dr. Lotin, a Gorilla, were both there. They smiled when the couple entered.

"I hear you are leaving us," Lotin said, taking Elphaba's hands in his own. "I'm sorry to hear that."

She forced a smile. "Yes, well, it's not safe for you if I stay here," she said. "I'm just going to stir some trouble in some other part of Oz."

He chuckled. "Please do. Be careful."

"Am I ever anything but?" Elphaba looked past him at the baby Bear in one of the beds. "Can I see him?"

"Of course." Dr. Lotin led her to the bed and they both stood looking down at it for a few moments. Elphaba felt tears stinging her eyes. She hated crying, but she couldn't help herself; she had grown very attached to all the Animals here, and she would miss them all terribly.

As always, Fiyero seemed to sense her mood – sometimes she thought he could read her at least as well as she could read him. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder.

"We'll be back in a few months to visit," he said quietly in her ear. "Maybe by then, the cub will be all better and playing around the village."

"Maybe…" She leant her head back against him. "I just wish we could be here to see him heal for ourselves."

They watched for a while longer, both of them quiet. Then Elphaba turned to the other doctor in the room.

"Dr. Reng," she said. "Can I ask you a favour before I go?"

The Hare smiled. "Is this about Lilah?"

She nodded. "I know she's a girl," she said, "and a Rabbit, not a Hare, and that you're hesitant to take her on as your student… but I really think she could learn a lot from you. She has so much potential and she's been dreaming about this her whole life… I know how that feels. To have a dream your entire life long. Mine turned out to be a bubble that burst the day I met the Wizard, but hers doesn't have to be. All I'm asking is for you to give her a chance to make her dream come true."

Dr. Reng looked at her for a long moment. Then he nodded slowly.

"I'm still not sure about this," he said, "but in order to thank you and Fiyero for all your help here at the hospital, and for everything you've done for us Animals in general… I will accept Lilah as my student, as a personal favour to you."

For the first time since she had decided to leave, Elphaba's smile was genuine, and she embraced the Hare. "Thank you, Doctor."

He patted her back with one paw. "You're welcome, Elphaba."

They went to pick up Dawyn at the Darners after that and then they left, seen off by nearly the entire village population.

They walked in silence for a long time, the roof of leaves above them filtering the sunlight that fell onto the Great Gillikin Forest. Dawyn padded across the leaves soundlessly, peering around every bush and tree, ever vigilant. Elphaba knew the Jaguar wasn't just being paranoid – the Gale Force could be out here, for all they knew, and they needed to watch their backs.

After a few hours, Elphaba stopped and looked up. They were in a clearing, the leaves above her making way for grey, cloudy sky. She could hear the wind rustling the leaves and howling in the distance.

"I'm going up," she said.

Dawyn stopped and looked at the young witch over her shoulder. "Are you crazy?" she asked sharply. "With this wind?"

"It's blowing towards the east," said Elphaba. "I'm just going up and once the Gale Force sees me, I'll use the wind to my advantage. Even if they try to shoot me, I'll be so fast they'll never hit me. I'll head towards Munchkinland, then turn around and meet you somewhere else. They'll all think I went east, to visit Nessa, maybe; and they'll stay away from the Animal hideouts here in the forest."

Dawyn exhaled slowly, clearly trying to come up with an argument against this plan, but finding none.

Fiyero just drew Elphaba into his arms and looked into her eyes. "How about Dawyn and I meet you at the Lesser Kells, and we'll go into the mountains from there?" he asked her.

Her eyes lit up. "Oh, Yero, really?"

She sounded so hopeful, it made him smile. "Well, why not? It's been more than five months since we last visited the Animal hideout there," he reasoned. "We could go back. I know how much you miss them all."

Elphaba felt attached to nearly every Animal she encountered and she had loved every hideout they had stayed at so far, but there were a few of them that held a special place in her heart. The hideout near the Lesser Kells was one of them. Doctor Dillamond had escaped there and was living there now, working as an actual doctor at the local hospital, which had been a pleasant surprise; but there were also many young Animals she'd gotten to know there, some of which she'd helped deliver. Most importantly, it was where Dawyn was originally from. The Jaguar had spent most of her life living in the woods, preferring acting like a wild animal over acting like a human, but she had been born in the village and spent the first years of her life there.

Elphaba leant up and kissed Fiyero softly. "I'd love that."

"Good." He squeezed her waist. "We'll see you there, then. Nightfall?"

She hesitated. "I'm not sure if I will be able to make that… but I'll try," she conceded. "Don't worry if I'm late, though – there's no telling what the wind will do. It might take me longer." She took her broom and looked up at the sky again.

"I love you," Fiyero called from behind her.

She smiled, but she didn't say it back. She never did. Not like this. Fiyero had asked her why once, and she had explained to him that it made her leaving feel too much like a goodbye.

"I know it's silly," she'd said, lowering her eyes, "but it's how I feel."

"It's not silly." He had squeezed her hand. "Do you mind _me _saying it, though?" he'd asked her. "I like saying it especially before you leave… just so that in case something does happen, to either of us… at least you know. That I love you."

She had smiled and shaken her head. "I always know you love me, Yero my hero. You don't have to remind me." She'd kissed him. "And the reason why I don't say it back is exactly because _you_ always say it," she'd said. "Because then I owe you an 'I love you' in return when I get back, and I always pay my debts, you know that. So if you say it and I don't, then I _have _to come back to you to say it back."

He had laughed and kissed her nose. "Your logic is flawless," he'd teased her, and she'd blushed.

"Shut up, Yero. I know it's stupid –"

"It's not." He had kissed her again. "It's adorable."

And so she didn't say it back now, either. Instead, she just kicked off and soared high up into the sky, soon disappearing out of sight.

She flew across the Great Gillikin Forest and in the direction of the Yellow Brick Road, searching for any sign of the Gale Force. When she finally found a group of them, she steered her broom down towards them and cackled.

They leapt out of her way, screaming and pointing, as they reached for their rifles.

"It's the Wicked Witch of the West!" one of them shouted. As if the others didn't have eyes and could see that for themselves.

"Shoot her!" their commander ordered.

"Ready? Fire!" another yelled. They shot at her, but she dodged the bullets easily, using the wind to her advantage. She allowed it to sweep her up and out of the way before slowing down and turning, cackling once more for good measure.

"You're never going to catch me!" she taunted, spinning around them in circles. They tried to shoot her again. They missed. Finally, they mounted their horses and most of them went after her while four others ran off in the opposite direction, probably to spread the word.

Elphaba sailed on the winds towards Munchkinland, so fast that after a few minutes, there was not a Gale Force soldier to be seen anymore. She slowed down to a halt and looked around her.

She had never missed Munchkinland. She could see the green meadows and the golden cornfields around her, farms everywhere, and she didn't feel a thing. Not even when her gaze fell upon the large governor's mansion in the distance. She had never felt a connection to either the house or the province and she saw no reason to start now.

The rain that had been falling steadily lately had made the roads muddy. The people stayed inside; there wasn't a single Munchkin to be seen, let alone one that would look up and spot her.

Elphaba hesitated. The wise thing now would be to go back to the Lesser Kells and meet up with Fiyero and Dawyn again… but something drew her towards the house on top of the hill instead.

She flew in through the window, landing gracefully and quietly. Nothing here had changed a bit, she realised as she started walking around the house. The same wooden floors and brick walls everywhere. The same coldness and darkness that had always consumed her back when she still lived here. The place had never felt like home to her at all.

She stopped in front of a portrait of her mother's that was hanging in the hallway and she frowned. She remembered the painting – it had hung in this exact same spot when Melena had still been alive, but a few years after her death, Frexspar had ordered for it to be brought down and she had never seen it again. Yet here it was, as if it had never been gone in the first place.

"Look who decided to stop by," a sneering voice suddenly said behind her, making her jump.

She turned, her heart pounding in her throat as she faced the person she had been both hoping and dreading to see.

"Nessa."


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Another chappy for you guys :). I'm glad you all liked Elphaba's "I-love-you-too" issues, haha. I quite liked that myself.**

**Vinkunwildflowerqueen: Yes, you will get to see Dr. Dillamond next chapter :).**

* * *

**Chapter 4.**

When Glinda entered the Throne Room, only the Wizard was there.

He smiled at her when he saw her. "Glinda. Sit down." He waved a hand in the general direction of a few chairs. "I just wanted to discuss some things with both you and Madame Morrible, so we're going to have to wait for a little while until she –"

"We found her!" someone suddenly cried out in triumph.

Glinda whirled around. Morrible came hurrying through the door, a smug grin on her face.

"We found her!" she repeated. "A sighting of her has been reported on the Yellow Brick Road, near Munchkinland! Some of our own soldiers – four of the Gale Force just came all the way from Munchkinland to tell us the news. She's there!"

"Munchkinland, hmm?" the Wizard mused. "She must be visiting her family, then."

"Her father," Morrible nodded. "And her sister."

"Madame," the Wizard said, rising to his feet and looking at Morrible. "I want you to pay Miss Nessarose a visit. As far as I know, she bears no love for her sister – not since Miss Elphaba left her. If the Witch _did _visit her family, Nessarose will surely tell you."

Morrible bowed. "Right away, Your Ozness." With a swirl of her skirts, she turned and left the room.

The Wizard looked at Glinda. "I want you to fly over to Munchkinland as well," he said. "Tell everyone what you told me and Madame Morrible last time we talked – about Elphaba's water allergy. Tell the Munchkins to keep a bucket of water nearby at all times."

Glinda had to resist the urge to smirk. Instead, she just curtsied elegantly. "Yes, Your Ozness."

The Wizard rubbed his hands. "Finally," he said, eyes glowing with the prospect, "the Wicked Witch of the West will be dead."

Glinda went to pack her things and conjured up a bubble to fly over to Munchkinland, hoping Elphaba would be far away from that place by the time Glinda and Morrible got there.

* * *

"Elphaba." Nessarose looked older now, the dark-haired witch realised. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun and she was wearing a long, black dress with a high collar, her beloved jewelled shoes peeking out from beneath the skirt. There was a heavy necklace around her neck and a touch of make-up on her face, but that did nothing to soften the sharp features her pale face had twisted into. There was a cold look in her eyes that Elphaba had never seen there before and that almost made her recoil. Almost.

"What are you doing here?" Nessarose asked – seemingly calm, but her voice shook. "You haven't been here in two years."

Elphaba suddenly realised with a start that her sister had grown to look exactly like their father.

"I know." She took a step toward Nessa. "I'm sorry."

"It's too late for apologies." Nessarose abruptly turned her chair around – a new one, Elphaba saw, with dark wood and red cushions made of velvet. "Go away, Elphaba, before I call the guards."

Elphaba shook her head. "I'm not leaving." She approached her sister cautiously. "Nessa… I'm sorry for leaving you, but I had to. I want you to know that."

Nessarose didn't turn, but she spoke softly, "I know."

"I came back because I wanted to see how you were doing," said Elphaba. "You're my little sister. I love you."

Nessarose snorted.

"Nessa…"

"Great." The girl turned and her eyes bored into Elphaba's like two fiery black coals. "I'm great," she snapped. "Perfect. So is Boq – he is very happy here. So is Father – or at least, I _hope _he is happy in his hospital room."

Elphaba blanched. "What?"

"He's in the hospital, Elphaba." Nessa hung her head and shook it. "He got sick after you left, and it only got worse and worse. He always said you'd be the death of him, and it looks like he's going to be right. You can be proud of yourself."

"I never wanted –"

"Of course you did!" Nessa pointed an accusing finger at her sister. "All you've ever done is bring shame upon our family! You left us, Elphaba! You abandoned me, and you left Father – as if everything you've done in your life before that wasn't bad enough already! It's your fault I don't have a mother." Her voice trembled. "And if Father dies, it will be your fault that I don't have a father anymore, too." She was crying now. So was Elphaba.

"Nessie, please –" she tried, but Nessarose shook her head.

"Get out!" she screamed, hitting the arm of her chair with a fist. "Get out of here before I call the Gale Force on you! I don't want to see you again, Elphaba – _ever_!"

Elphaba took a deep breath, wiping away her tears. She didn't want to leave her sister like this, but Nessa wasn't giving her a choice. All this time, she had only ever thought about herself – herself and what _she _thought was important. Nessa was right. While she had been off trying to save Animals, her father and Nessa had been here, abandoned and ashamed by her, wondering if they'd ever even see her again.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

Nessarose narrowed her eyes. "Just _go_!"

Elphaba nodded and left.

* * *

Tiari had been a nurse at the Central Munchkin Hospital for over thirty years already, but never had she seen a case like that of Frexspar Thropp.

His youngest daughter, Miss Nessarose, had explained to the hospital staff that his health had been going downhill ever since his eldest daughter had disappeared. Tiari had seen people dying of grief before, but that didn't seem to be the case with Governor Thropp. He would light up when his youngest daughter visited him and he would talk to her almost as if he were completely healthy; but when she left, he sagged back into his pillows and became a patient again. His eyes were surrounded by dark circles, hollow like a skeleton's eyes, and his face was nearly as white as the hospital sheets. He had lost what little hair he'd had left and he slept nearly all the time. He rarely ate or drank and when he slept, he sometimes talked in his sleep, muttering of regrets, grief, and pain.

"I am a horrible father," he'd told Tiari once, when she had been helping him wash up.

She'd shaken her head. "Of course not, Governor Thropp," she had said in her most soothing and reassuring voice. "Miss Nessarose adores you, that much is clear. You raised her well, sir. She is a sweet girl."

"Not Nessa." He had shaken his head wildly. "Not Nessa. My… my _other _daughter."

Tiari had understood that he was talking about the girl that had disappeared, but she didn't want to bring that up lest she upset him. "You're a wonderful father, Governor Thropp," she had said again as she finished washing him and helped him back into his clothes and then into his bed. "Just go to sleep now. Miss Nessarose is stopping by again in the morning."

"Not Nessa…" he had muttered again, even as he drifted back off to sleep because of the medication she had given him. "Not Nessa… Elphaba."

Tiari was not a native Munchkin – she had grown up in Quadling Country and had moved to Munchkinland with her father when she was eight. She had been a nurse since she was sixteen and she had heard many stories about Munchkinland and its inhabitants, but also about the rest of Oz – she knew the stories about the Wicked Witch of the West and the Animals. She also knew that the Munchkins called Miss Nessarose the 'Wicked Witch of the East', but she had never really linked those two Witches together.

Not, that was, until she entered Frexspar Thropp's hospital room one day and found a green-skinned woman in there that could only be one person.

"The Wicked Witch of the West," she gasped, dropping the tray she was holding.

The woman's head whipped around and she leapt away from Frexspar's bed, holding up both hands. "Don't panic," she began, but by then Tiari had already reached for the bucket in the corner of the room and held it up threateningly.

"Get away from him," she said angrily, trying not to show her fear, "or I _will _throw this at you!"

The green-skinned woman just blinked at her. "Water?"

"Yes!" Tiari raised the bucket higher. "_Now get away from my patient!_"

"Please." The woman took a step in Tiari's direction with a sadness in her eyes that made the nurse falter for the briefest moment. "All I want is to say goodbye to him. He's my father…"

"Get away, _witch_!" Tiari screamed, throwing the bucket at the woman. The Witch gasped as the water hit her and soaked her clothes and hair, dripping down her skin.

Tiari's eyes widened to the size of saucers when the Wicked Witch just stood there, completely drenched. "You… you're not melting!" she stammered.

The green-skinned woman took a step in her direction and Tiari fled the room, screaming in panic. "The Wicked Witch! The Wicked Witch of the West is here!"

Elphaba looked at her father once more, taking his hand and squeezing it softly.

"I'm sorry, Father," she whispered. "I have to go."

His eyes fluttered open again and a small smile graced his features as he patted her hand. "…okay, Elphaba…" He looked at her. "…thank you. For… for…"

Even talking was hard for him now and Elphaba hushed him. "I know." She leant forward to kiss his brow. "Goodbye, Father."

"Goodbye…" he whispered. He followed her with his eyes until she had disappeared out of the window.

Then he closed his eyes and died.

* * *

When Fiyero heard a sound behind him, he whirled around, ready to attack; but he immediately relaxed when he saw who it was. "Fae."

She wrapped her arms around him and pressed her cheek against his chest, saying the first words she almost always said to him when she got back. "I love you, too."

He smiled, but his smile quickly faded when he felt her shaking. "Fae?" He tried to pull away to look into her eyes, but she clung to him, making it impossible for him to see her face. He suddenly realised that she was soaking wet.

"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" he asked anxiously. "What happened?"

"I…" She sniffled softly. "Father is… dead." And suddenly, the tears were falling from her eyes and she buried her face in Fiyero's shirt, crying. "Father's dead, Fiyero… I went to visit Nessa, and she said he was in the hospital and he was dying… so I went over there. I know that was stupid," she said before he could say anything, "but I just had to see him one last time…"

"Shh." He stroked her hair, holding her to him. "It's okay, Fae. I understand."

She sniffled again. "He… he _apologised _to me, Fiyero." She wiped her tears away. "He apologised for the way he treated me. He said it was because he was so sad over my mother's death, and instead of grieving, he blamed it on me… and he apologised, over and over again, and he asked me to forgive him. I told him I did, that it was okay… and then this nurse came in and started screaming 'Witch!', so I had to leave. She even threw a bucket of water at me. Apparently she thought that would hurt me."

The tears started falling again. "I decided to hide until it would get dark, and I stuck near the governor's mansion… and then a messenger came for Nessa to tell her that Father had died."

"Oh, Fae…" He held her, still stroking her hair and her back as she sobbed into his shoulder. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart."

"I can't believe he actually apologised to me," she cried. "I thought… I thought he hated me, but… but he said he didn't, he never had…" She sobbed again. "All this time I thought he hated me, and he never did… we could have gotten along, Yero, we could have been a family, if it weren't for me…"

"No." He pulled away and caught her chin, looking into her eyes. He shook his head. "None of it was your fault," he said. "Your father said so himself – he was sad over your mother's death and he blamed it on you. You didn't do anything wrong – he did. And it's wonderful that he apologised to you now, sweetheart, that you two made things right before he passed away, but that doesn't make any of the things that happened in the past your fault."

She didn't say anything else. She just cried, cried for the father she lost… the father she never really had.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: I'm glad you all liked the Elphaba/Frex part in the previous chapter - I quite liked that myself. Though it must feel a bit weird for you to not want to hunt him down for once, heheh.**

**Azaisya: You're right - things never go nice and smoothly in my stories :P. This is no exception. That's all I'm going to say.**

* * *

**Chapter 5.**

"Something is not right," Morrible insisted, glaring at the Wizard. "That nurse said the Witch was there. She threw water at her. Elphaba didn't melt. Why didn't she melt?"

The Wizard chewed his lip. "Maybe Glinda was right," he suggested, "and Elphaba found a spell to counter her water allergy."

"Or maybe," Morrible said, sneering as she turned around to stare out of the window, "our dear Miss Glinda was lying and there was never a water allergy to begin with."

The Wizard raised an eyebrow. "You think she's protecting Elphaba?"

"All I know is that they were roommates at Shiz," said Morrible. "They were friends. What if Glinda is not truly on our side? Sure, she likes the position she's in right now – the attention, the glory, the fame, and the glamour… but maybe she likes her friend more."

"An interesting notion." The Wizard nodded slowly. "And a dangerous one. We could use Miss Glinda on our side, Madame. She has a great influence on the people of Oz."

"She does," Morrible acknowledged. "And if she is on our side, well, good for us. If she's not, however, that influence she has can quickly turn against us."

"We should put her to the test somehow."

"Yes, but how?" Morrible shook her head. "The best way would be to capture Elphaba and have her killed – Glinda's reaction would tell us enough… but Oz knows Elphaba is not so easy to catch."

The Wizard perked up. "Unless…"

"Unless what?"

"Didn't you say she went to see her sister?" the Wizard asked. "And her father as well? In Munchkinland?"

Morrible nodded. "She did."

"That clearly means she still cares about her family, doesn't it?" The Wizard's eyes were gleaming now. "Her father passed away, but her sister didn't."

Realisation dawned on Morrible's face. "If something were to happen to Miss Nessarose, she'd come flying to Munchkinland to help her sister sooner than we could say 'Wicked Witch of the West'… and Nessarose isn't of much use to us, anyway."

"Indeed." The Wizard smirked. "We catch Elphaba, we get rid of the Wicked Witch of the West, and while doing that, we determine Glinda's loyalty, depending on which we'll keep her with us or throw her into Southstairs."

Morrible grinned at him. "Your Ozness," she said in a sing-song voice as she curtsied before him, "I like the way your brain works."

He returned her grin and responded to her curtsy with a bow of his own. "Why, thank you, Madame."

* * *

"Elphaba? Are you alright?"

The dark-haired witch looked up from the messages she had been reading and gave Dawyn a weary smile. "I'm fine, Dawyn. Just tired."

The Jaguar entered the room cautiously, cushioned paws padding lightly on the wooden floor. "Fiyero told me about your father," she said.

Elphaba sighed and removed her reading glasses, rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"I'm okay," she said again. "A little shaken, maybe… I don't know." She shrugged. "I never thought he did love me, and even now, I'm not sure he really did… but he was still my father." She closed her eyes for a moment. "Not to mention that Nessa is all alone now. His death must have been devastating for her… I wish I could be there for her."

Dawyn nudged Elphaba's arm with her nose. "You're here for us," she offered.

Elphaba smiled at her – a little sadly, but genuinely all the same. "That I am. Did you need my help with anything, or did you just come to check up on me?"

"Mostly the latter." Dawyn became serious again. "But Dr. Dillamond just told me that Merly isn't doing well, Elphaba. Dillamond fears he might not make it through the night."

Elphaba lowered her pencil and took a deep breath, trying to compose herself. Many Animals died these days. Even if the Gale Force wouldn't be sweeping the entire land of Oz, it was the natural course of life that Animals died… but that did not make it any easier.

Merly had been relatively weak when he was born. He was a small Giraffe that Elphaba had helped deliver when she and Fiyero had been staying in this village, five months ago. His mother had been shot by the Gale Force and she had made it back to the hideout before collapsing. As she lay dying, Doctor Dillamond, Fiyero, and Elphaba had delivered her child. She had lived long enough to see him and name him Merly; then she had passed away.

Every single minute of every single day, someone had been watching over Merly. He had to be fed by hand, he had to be kept warm, and he had to be kept an eye on in general. He had still been weak, but on his way to recovery, when Elphaba and Fiyero had been forced to leave. Elphaba had hoped to find him in good health now, but Dr. Dillamond had told her sadly that the difficult birth had been traumatic for his small body and that he was weak and sickly still. He had caught a disease from one of the other Animals now, but even though it was mild and not life-threatening in normal circumstances, it seemed that it would be taking Merly's life, after all.

The young witch rose to her feet, abandoning her paperwork, and followed Dawyn outside to the small hospital they had built. Most of the Animal hideouts had been nothing but a group of small buildings when Elphaba and Fiyero had first arrived. Each and every time, Fiyero took it upon himself to teach the men how to build proper homes and buildings. Elphaba, meanwhile, taught them how to use the forest to find and grow things to fend for themselves. She'd interrogate every Animal present, writing down their professions, after which she and Dawyn figured out how every Animal could be of most use for the village. Doctors and nurses were used to set up a hospital to tend to the sick and wounded. Farmers were used to grow food; builders to make, strengthen, and expand the houses. Some of the Animals had fought in civil wars when they were younger – they were charged with the task of defending the village. Seamstresses could make clothes, maids could clean and care for the children. Even the less accepted professions were put to use – in every hideout, Elphaba found some Animals that were adept at stealing or just sneaking in general, and she sent them out to scout the environment every now and then to watch for threats.

Slowly, hideout by hideout and Animal by Animal, Elphaba, Fiyero, and Dawyn worked to build the villages so that they could house the remaining Animals as best as they could. Elphaba used the Grimmerie to cast protection and cloaking spells over every village, to decrease the chances of them being discovered.

Still, though, they had to be careful; and Elphaba had learnt that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't protect the Animals from everything, least of all themselves. Sometimes a scout decided to sneak off and disappear to a town instead, only to be caught and killed. Sometimes Animals of one hideout split up because of disagreements. One time, some of the village's inhabitants had been careless, leaving the hideout to venture out into the forest, only to be found and captured by the Gale Force; and another time, the Gale Force had discovered one of the Animal hideouts despite Elphaba's best efforts and spells. The Animals had fought hard and defended themselves well, but they were simply outnumbered.

The moment Elphaba had received word of what had happened, she had jumped onto her broom and flown over to the spot, but she had been too late. All she had found upon her arrival there were burnt-out buildings and bodies alike.

She had been devastated and she had blamed herself for not protecting them well enough, but eventually, she had learnt that some things were just out of her hands. She could try her hardest, but she couldn't account for everything.

"I should have been there," she had insisted as she had been fighting with Fiyero over the subject again. "I should have been there to protect them."

"If you had been there," Fiyero had said to her, "then you wouldn't have been able to help all the others. The hideout in the Quadling Swamplands would have been discovered and the Animals _there _would have been murdered if you hadn't distracted the Gale Force. The Animals in northern Munchkinland would have starved if we hadn't visited their village and taught them how to feed themselves. You've done so much good, Fae – you do every day – but you can't be everywhere at once and you can't protect everyone. You have to accept that or you're going to drive yourself crazy with guilt."

It had taken him time and a lot of conversations with her, but eventually, she had accepted his words as the truth. She still tried her best and worked her hardest to defend and protect everyone, but she was learning step by step to let other things go and to not feel guilty over things that happened.

But just because she didn't feel guilty over Merly dying, did not mean it didn't make her sad.

She found Dr. Dillamond with the small Giraffe, examining him. He looked up when he heard her and Dawyn enter and he smiled sadly at them, then shook his head.

Elphaba approached the bed and placed one hand on Merly's forehead. He was burning up with fever.

His eyes opened and he blinked groggily. "Mummy?"

"Shh." Elphaba stroked his head. "It's okay, pet, it's okay. You can go to your Mummy now." She leant forward to press a kiss to his brow. "Say hi to her for me, will you?" she asked, her voice breaking.

Merly smiled and drifted off to sleep again. Doctor Dillamond placed one hoof on Elphaba's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Elphaba," he said gravely. "We did all we could."

She nodded, not taking her eyes off the small Giraffe. "I know."

She stayed with him that night, caring for him to the best of her abilities. Dr. Dillamond found her the next morning with one of Merly's hooves in her own hand. She was stroking it absently, her mind clearly elsewhere. When the Goat came in, she looked up and he could see it in her eyes before he had even glanced over at Merly. The poor boy had passed away.

"I'm sorry," Dillamond said sadly.

Elphaba nodded, her voice soft and hoarse when she said, "Me, too."

"I will find Fiyero for you," Dillamond said, not needing to be asked. To most of the Animals, Elphaba and Fiyero were a unity; even when apart, they seemed to be together somehow. It was common knowledge in practically every Animal village they had ever been to that if Fiyero was upset, he needed Elphaba and whenever Elphaba was sad, someone had to go and get Fiyero.

She tried to smile, but failed, so she just looked down at the young Giraffe's body again and nodded.

Dillamond left.

Dawyn, who had come with the Goat, nuzzled Elphaba's arm and the green girl wrapped her arm around the Jaguar's neck, burying her face in the soft fur. It took Elphaba a while to realise that Dawyn was crying, but it didn't really surprise her. When Dawyn had still been living in this village, she had known Merly's mother very well and she had been there, too, when the baby Giraffe was born.

"It's okay," Elphaba whispered hoarsely, pressing her cheek to the top of Dawyn's head. "He's with his mother again now."

Dawyn's voice was soft when she replied. "I know."

They sat together, holding each another tightly as they comforted one another in their grief.

* * *

**Another sad one, I know... next one will be better, I promise. I think. Wait... is it? There's some happy stuff and some fluff, too, but... um... yeah, you just wait and see for yourself.**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Like I said... there's fluff in this chapter, and some cuteness, but also a kind of cliffy-ish thingy. Yeah. Okay.**

**I have my appointment with the 'knee doctor' at the hospital tomorrow... fingers crossed that he finds something - preferably something easily remedied. You'll hear all about that when I next update :).**

**Other than that, life and uni are crazy, but I'll live.**

* * *

**Chapter 6.**

"A hurricane?" Glinda turned to peer out of the window and her eyes widened when she saw the dark skies and black clouds. There were flashes of lightning in the distance and the wind was howling, picking up leaves and twigs and hurling them around. It did look bad and Glinda was sure a storm was coming… but a _hurricane_?

"I strongly suggest you stay inside, Your Goodness," her hostess, a farmer's wife, said in concern.

The friendly farmer couple she had been staying with for the past days had been doing more than just giving her food and shelter – they had looked out for her and treated her like a member of the family.

She had first arrived in Munchkinland on the mission the Wizard had sent her on – telling the people about Elphaba's supposed water allergy and making sure they all had a bucket nearby. She knew Morrible had gone to talk to Nessarose. She also knew that Nessarose had confirmed the fact that Elphaba had been at the governor's mansion and that she had promised Morrible to call the Gale Force immediately if Elphaba ever showed up again.

Personally, Glinda couldn't begin to understand why Nessa would hate her sister so much. What had Elphaba ever done to her? Yes, she had left; but it had been for a cause. For the greater good – literally. Nessa could hardly blame the green girl for that, could she?

In any case, it was clear that Nessarose now hated Elphaba more than she had ever loved her in the past, and so Glinda hoped her friend would steer clear of her family from now on. She didn't want Elphaba to endanger herself.

When word had gotten out that Elphaba had been spotted at the hospital to visit her father, not to mention the fact that a nurse had thrown a bucket of water at the dark-haired witch, Glinda knew there were going to be questions. Elphaba obviously hadn't melted. Were the rumours about the Witch not true, then? Did she cast a spell on herself? Glinda had been forced to stick around and reassure everyone – or attempt to, anyway.

And now there was a storm coming. Something about that fact didn't really sit right with her… especially after the farmer's wife had just called it a hurricane.

Hurricanes hardly ever happened in Oz, Glinda knew; and when they did, it was usually in Quadling Country or occasionally in the Vinkus… but not in Munchkinland. Never in Munchkinland.

She turned to face the farmer's wife again. "Are you sure this is a hurricane?" she asked.

The woman nodded. "I grew up in the Quadling swamplands," she said. "I know what a hurricane looks like. This will definitely become one."

"How?" Glinda whispered to herself as she stared out of the window. What in Oz was going on?

"My husband is just taking the animals inside." The woman placed a hand on Glinda's lower arm. "Please stay in today, Your Goodness."

Glinda nodded slowly. "I will."

The woman sighed with relief. "Thank you."

Glinda bit her lip, still looking outside. A hurricane… right after Morrible visited Nessarose. Right now, when Glinda was here in Munchkinland. Right after Elphaba had been assaulted with a bucket of water and had _not _melted.

_Didn't I ever tell you, dear? Weather magic is my specialty!_

Glinda wasn't sure what Morrible could hope to accomplish by sending a hurricane to Munchkinland. Did she want to create a disaster and blame Elphaba again, to increase the people's loyalty of the Wizard? Did she intend to murder Glinda because she didn't trust the blonde and was afraid she was still on Elphaba's side? The thought made Glinda's blood run cold. Had she been found out? How could she know? If she went back and they did know her secret, her life was in grave danger… but if they didn't know and she fled, she'd only make herself look suspicious.

_Maybe it's not even Morrible's doing_, she told herself. _Maybe this is just a real, natural hurricane. Maybe you have nothing to be afraid of. Don't be so paranoid._

But she couldn't help but have a bad feeling about it.

* * *

"What are you doing?" Elphaba asked flatly as Fiyero dragged her through the village. "Yero, I'm really not in the mood for this."

"I know," he said. He stopped and turned to face her. "I know Merly's death hit you hard, Fae –"

"It's not just Merly's death," she interjected fiercely. "It's _everything_, Fiyero. I just feel like what we're doing is completely useless. The Animals are still dying. The Wizard and Morrible are still in control. We can pretend that we're saving people, but no-one is ever safe!"

"Shh. I know." He pulled her against him and kissed her forehead. She was trembling and he held her tighter, resting his chin on the top of her head.

"I know, Fae," he whispered again. "Trust me – I know." He pulled back to look at her. "But even though we're not changing the world, sweetheart, that doesn't mean we're useless. And that's what I want to show you. Come on." He held out his hand and she took it, allowing him to lead her to a relatively large house near the middle of the village.

She blinked. "The orphanage?"

He led her through the front door and into one of the playrooms, where five or six young Animals were playing a game. The moment they caught sight of Elphaba and Fiyero, they dropped what they were doing and scrambled to their feet. "Miss Elphaba!"

An involuntary smile lit up her face and she knelt down to greet them. "Hello, you all!" She pretended to gasp. "My, you've grown so big!"

They beamed at her. "Miss Lynera says that she thinks I'm going to be even bigger than her when I grow up!" the Lamb, who was called Day, told her.

Elphaba laughed. Miss Lynera, who ran the orphanage and was a Sheep as well, was a kind and motherly woman… who, even standing upright, barely reached Elphaba's shoulder. It wouldn't be very hard for Day to outgrow the poor woman.

"Miss Elphaba, look!"A young Chimpanzee showed Elphaba the drawing she'd made. "That's you," she explained – a little unnecessarily, given the fact that one of the persons on the drawing was coloured a bright green – "and that is Master Fiyero."

One of the other kids giggled. "Elphaba and Fiyero, sitting in a tree…"

"Hey!" Fiyero exclaimed.

The children were all giggling now. "Fiyero," Day asked, "do you love Miss Elphaba?"

"Of course he does, stupid," one of the girls said. "Everyone with eyes can see that."

"Miss Elphaba, how long are you staying?" a small Turtle asked, eyes alight with hope. "Will you still be here for my birthday this week?"

"Of course, Tany," Elphaba assured the Animal. "I wouldn't miss your birthday for the world."

The kids chattered on and Fiyero wrapped his arms around Elphaba's waist from behind, pulling her against his chest.

"Does this seem useless to you?" he asked her softly. He nodded at the children. "Do you remember how they came to be here?"

"Of course." She closed her eyes for a moment. "How could I forget?"

"Do you think Day would have survived," Fiyero continued, "if you hadn't saved him from the Gale Force after they had murdered his parents?"

Elphaba bit her lip.

"Do you think Malin would be alive today if we hadn't found her all alone in the forest, her parents vanished and probably captured?"

"Maybe not, but –"

"And Tany?" Fiyero went on. "Do you remember that day on that beach near a lake in Gillikin? Do you remember us finding the mother Turtle, stabbed to death, and all her eggs deliberately crushed, except for one? And do you remember what happened when one of the soldiers still there tried to trample Tany's egg as well?"

Elphaba's eyes were like fire. "He deserved it."

"He did," Fiyero agreed. "They all did, but that's not what I'm trying to say. Don't you see what a difference we made, Fae? Maybe not for Oz in general… but for _them_?" He nodded again at the young Animals, who had gone back to their game. "And to so many others? If Dawyn were here, she'd agree with me. She was one of those others."

Elphaba sighed. "I know."

"Look at Lown." Fiyero nodded at a small Wolf pup that was currently playing with Tany. "He would have been tortured to death if you hadn't interfered."

"He lost his front paw!"

"He would have lost so much more than that if it weren't for you," Fiyero insisted. "And thanks to you and me and of course Doctor Dillamond, he learnt how to walk and play again with only three paws. He wouldn't have stood a chance without us, Fae. None of them would have."

He turned her around in his arms so that he could look at her face.

"I understand why you feel this way," he said, reaching out to brush some raven hair away from her face. "I do. I know it's hard to see some of them slipping away, to not be able to help them all… but think of the ones we _did _help. We're not useless. We saved lives. That may not matter to the Wizard or to Morrible and it might not make a big difference in Oz, but it makes a huge difference to _them_, the ones we saved, and their friends and families."

She nodded, looking over his shoulder at the young ones playing. "I know… you're right."

He kissed her gently. "I love you."

"I love you, too." She slipped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest for a moment, closing her eyes.

"Elphaba and Fiyero, sitting in a tree," someone sang behind them, giggling mischievously.

Elphaba opened her eyes and mock-glared at the Eagle flapping his wings behind Fiyero's back.

"K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Day sang loudly before quickly hiding behind his Eagle friend. The other kids were giggling again and Elphaba threateningly wiggled her fingers at them.

"Do you want me to turn you all into toads?" she asked.

A chorus of "Noooo!" went up from the group of kids.

She grinned at them. "Do you want me to tickle you to death, then?"

Fiyero watched with a wide smile as the Elphaba chased after the children, who shrieked and laughed as they ran all across the room, trying to get away from her. It was nice to see her genuinely having fun for a change. They didn't get many opportunities to feel or act carefree these days, and especially Elphaba was always worrying about one thing or another.

Suddenly, Elphaba gasped and her arms flew up to hug her own waist, as if she was in pain.

At first Fiyero thought it was part of the game she was playing with the kids; but when she looked up at him and he saw the fear and slight panic in her eyes, he knew this wasn't a game.

He was kneeling down in front of her in a clock-tick, grabbing her arms and shaking her gently. "Fae? Fae, what's wrong? Talk to me. Come on. Are you okay?"

The kids, noticing something was wrong, stopped running and fell silent, all of them staring at Fiyero and Elphaba with wide eyes.

"Nessa," Elphaba whispered. "Something's wrong… Nessa is in danger."

"How do you know?" he asked, confused, but she shook her head.

"I don't know… I just do!" she said desperately. He realised this must have something to do with her powers and he decided that this was not the time to question her further.

She shrugged him off and rose to her feet quickly. "I have to go to her."

"I'll go with you," he said immediately, but she shook her head.

"No. It's too dangerous."

"I'm going with you," he repeated, his voice making it clear that he would bear no contradiction, and she didn't have the energy – or the time – to object and argue with him. She nodded.

"I'm sorry," she said softly to the children. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Good luck, Miss Elphaba," Tany said and the other kids echoed her words.

Elphaba smiled at them all before hurrying out of the orphanage and into the village. She all but ran over to her and Fiyero's home and grabbed her broom and her hat. Then she ran out again and mounted her broom.

Fiyero got on behind her and kissed her cheek. "Everything will be alright, Fae."

"I hope so," she said, clearly not convinced, before she kicked off and they flew high up into the sky.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Hi guys, sorry for the late update - I've been down with a pretty bad cold and between that and the stress of uni, I kind of... forgot. Sorry.**

**Thank you all so much for the reviews! I wish I could reward them with a fluffy, cliffyless chapter, but... um... yeah. *whistles innocently and hides from readers with pitchforks***

* * *

**Chapter 7.**

By the time the farmer's couple allowed Glinda to leave the house, some time after the hurricane had passed, the Munchkins were all out in the streets, muttering and talking excitedly. It was clear that they had been surprised by the hurricane and that they were afraid.

When they saw Glinda, they looked relieved and called out to her. She conjured up her bubble and floated into the air, smiling and waving at the people.

"Fellow Ozians," she said. "I know you must be frightened, but it looks like the danger has passed now. I shall go and see if there is everyone is alright and if there is anything I can do to help. I suggest you do the same. There will be houses that need rebuilding and there might be people who are hurt, but I have faith in you all and I know that you will do the right thing and help your neighbours, as you should."

They cheered for her and she waved daintily and gracefully as she floated off in her bubble, but then a farmer came running towards the group of people, panting. "Lady Glinda!"

She blinked at him. "Yes?"

He pointed at a hill in the distance, gasping for air. "A… a house!"

Glinda frowned slightly. "What?"

"There was a house… falling from the sky!" He shook his head. "I think it hit someone!"

"The governor!" a woman cried as she followed the farmer, looking equally panicked. "Apparently Miss Nessarose was having tea in her back garden and the house fell on her, just like that! My neighbour says she's flat as a pancake!"

"She's gone?" one of the people in the crowd asked hopefully.

"That woman was a Wicked Witch," another man declared. "If she really is dead, then I'm glad!"

Glinda, however, had gone pale.

"I will fly over to the governor's mansion and see if these rumours are true," she promised the Munchkins, her voice trembling only slightly. She flew off, trying to stop her hands from shaking. She hoped the rumours weren't true. Nessarose… Elphie would be devastated.

When she arrived at the governor's mansion, though, and entered the gardens, she didn't have to look carefully to see that it was true. There was a small, wooden house, clearly crashed down from the sky. A pair of feet in striped stockings stuck out from underneath it and a Munchkin was sitting some distance away, looking as if he were in some sort of shock.

Glinda gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "Boq?"

He blinked up at her and then looked at Nessa's feet again incredulously, as if he couldn't believe it.

"She… she was having tea," he said hoarsely. "I told her to stay inside because of the hurricane, but she insisted on having tea outside, as she always did… she said that as long as it wasn't raining, she would be fine. She sent me to get her some biscuits and then I heard some sort of crashing noise…" He trailed off.

"I'm sorry, Boq," Glinda said quietly. "It wasn't your fault, though. Nessa was always so stubborn… she would never have listened to you."

He sniffled. "She treated me like garbage," he admitted, looking down, "and I never loved her, but… but I cared for her."

Glinda squeezed his shoulder. "I know."

She helped him up and led him over to where some other curious Munchkins were standing, trying to get a good look at the house and their former governor. Glinda shooed them all away.

"Take care of him," she told one of the women among them, pushing Boq towards her. Then she firmly declared that everyone was to stay away from the governor's house.

"I can confirm that Miss Nessarose Thropp, the governor of Munchkinland, is dead," she said, at which all the people immediately started to talk and mutter.

Glinda shushed them. "I will need to investigate the circumstances of her death and a funeral will have to be arranged. I do not want you all gathering round as if this is some sort of show, alright? A woman just died and I hope you will behave respectfully. Now if you please, _stay away _from the governor's mansion until her body has been removed and everything has been taken care of. I have already sent for the Gale Force – they will be here shortly to assist me."

The Munchkins were reluctant, but as always, they listened to Glinda and they scattered, retreating to their respective homes while Glinda slowly walked back to the garden. She approached the fallen house, unable to look at the pair of feet sticking out from underneath it.

"Oh, Nessa…" she whispered. She picked some flowers from the garden before moving back to the spot near Nessa's feet, kneeling down and laying the flowers on the ground.

"No!" a voice suddenly shouted; and the next thing Glinda knew, a flash of black and green shot past her, falling down on her knees next to Nessarose's feet. Hunched over, as if she were in pain, Elphaba cried, "Nessa… I'm so sorry, Nessa, please forgive me…"

Glinda nearly burst into tears upon hearing that. "Oh, Elphie…" She pulled her friend into a hug. Over Elphaba's shoulder, she saw Fiyero appear from the cornfield, and they exchanged a sad and slightly worried look.

"It wasn't your fault, Elphie," Glinda told her friend firmly, pulling away and looking Elphaba in the eye. There were no tears, but the look on the green girl's face nearly broke Glinda's heart. "It wasn't."

"She hated me, Glinda." The dark-haired witch shook her head, clearly disgusted with herself. "I _left _her. I abandoned her, and Father… and our mother, they…" She choked back a single sob. "It's my fault they're dead, I killed off my entire family… Nessa had every right to hate me, and now she's dead and I can't make things right with her ever again!"

"Elphie, please." Glinda shook her friend gently. "It wasn't your fault. None of their deaths were your fault, you have to believe that. Listen to me, Elphie – I hate to do this right now, but you can't stay here. You have to go."

"What?" Elphaba blinked at her friend in confusion. "Go where?"

"That hurricane…" Glinda shook her head. "I don't trust it, Elphie. I think Morrible may have been behind this," she confessed quietly. "I think she might have created the hurricane… that she might have killed Nessa… to get to you. To capture you. Especially after you freed those Monkeys, they're more determined to get you than ever. You have to get out of here."

Elphaba seemed to be in a daze, but Fiyero nodded quickly and helped the young witch to her feet. "Come on, Fae."

"But…"

"Keep yourself safe, Elphie," Glinda insisted. "Hurry. Leave. Get as far away from here as possible, and please be careful… both of you."

"We will." Fiyero started leading Elphaba away, but he gave Glinda a small smile over his shoulder. "It's good to see you again, Glin."

She returned the smile tearily. "It's good to see you, too."

"Take care," he said. "And thank you."

She nodded and watched them leave, but Elphaba turned around at some point. "Glin?"

"Yes?"

"Will you…" Elphaba took a deep breath, steeling herself. "Will you make sure she… she gets the goodbye she deserves?" Her voice broke.

Glinda's heart ached for her friend. "Of course I will, Elphie. I will."

Elphaba nodded, looking down; and Fiyero gently led her away. Glinda watched them until they were out of sight and then turned around. The Gale Force could be here any moment now and Nessa would be taken away. Glinda promised herself that she would take care of the burial and arrange a service, as Nessarose would have wanted. She would make Elphie proud. No matter how mean Nessa had become in the end, she was also still the shy and kind, if somewhat spoilt, young girl Glinda had known and been friends with back at Shiz.

She looked up at the now again clear, blue sky and closed her eyes for a moment.

Then she composed herself and plastered on a fake smile, ready to face the world again.

* * *

They hadn't even walked for ten minutes when Elphaba collapsed, unable to keep herself upright any longer.

"She's dead, Fiyero," she whispered, tears suddenly filling her eyes and spilling over. She sounded incredulous, as if she couldn't believe it. "I'm sorry, I can't… I need…" She closed her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. "She was my little sister…" She pressed her hands to her mouth in an attempt to stifle her sob, but she failed. "My little sister is dead…" She buried her face in her hands, shoulders shaking with silent sobs.

Fiyero hesitated for a moment – he knew she had to grieve and he hated seeing her in pain, but he also had to think of her safety and he wasn't sure if it would be safe for them to stay here for the time being… but then again, he realised as he looked around him, they were in a cornfield. They could stop for a few minutes.

He knelt down next to her and pulled her into his arms, rocking her back and forth.

"I know, sweetheart," he whispered as she cried into his shoulder. "I know. I'm so sorry… but Glinda was right, love – it wasn't your fault. None of it was. I know you're grieving for Nessa, but I don't want you to blame yourself."

She didn't reply. She just hid away in his shirt, her arms tight around him, and he held her until she stopped trembling.

"Listen," he said, pulling back and wiping her tears away with his thumbs. "We have to get out of here – it's not safe. Can you do that for me?"

"Don't treat me like a child," she sniffled indignantly. "I'm upset, not stupid." When she saw the flash of hurt in his eyes, she grimaced. "Oh, I'm sorry, Yero… I didn't mean it like that." She ran her fingers through her hair in frustration. "And I'm sorry about all the crying. Oz, I feel like I haven't been doing anything but crying lately – over my father, Merly, and now Nessa…" She closed her eyes again and shook her head. "Nessa… I can't believe she's gone." She looked up at Fiyero with new tears in her eyes. "You heard what Glinda said, Yero… she thinks Morrible did this to finally capture me. Don't you see? It _is _my fault. If it weren't for me, she'd still be alive…"

"Stop." He cupped her face and looked into her eyes. "Stop right there. I won't hear any of this, Elphaba, do you hear me? It's not your fault. It's not. None of it was." He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "We'll continue this conversation later, but right now we have to get as far away from here as possible, and quickly. Can you fly?"

She nodded, steeling herself, and straightened her back. "Yes."

He nodded, too. "Good. Let's go."

* * *

Morrible looked into the mirror she had enchanted, hissing in rage and annoyance.

"What's wrong?" the Wizard, who just walked in, asked. "You look ready to rip someone's throat out."

"She escaped us again!" Morrible smashed the mirror against the wall in pure frustration. "That stupid Gale Force is about as incompetent as they come! I told them to be there the _moment _the hurricane ended, but they were seeking shelter from the storm and by the time they thought it safe enough to come out, Elphaba already fled! Can you believe this? That bunch of incompetent _monkeys_!" She whirled around, her heavy skirts swishing. Her eyes burnt as she looked at the Wizard.

"Elphaba escaped us," she said in a low voice, "but she won't next time. One way or another, we are going to get her, do you understand?"

"I hear you." The Wizard sat down upon his throne and plucked at his chin.

A malicious smirk curled the corners of Morrible's lips up. "And this wasn't entirely for nothing, you know."

The Wizard lifted an eyebrow. "Oh?"

She approached his throne. "I watched in the mirror," she said. "I saw it all. Including," she was nearly snarling with rage now, "the interaction our dearest Miss _Glinda _had with the Wicked Witch of the West."

The Wizard's eyes widened. "She saw her?! And she didn't say anything, or try to get her captured?"

Morrible shook her head. "I told you, Your Ozness. I told you." She clasped her hands together. "But now at least we know where her loyalty lies," she said. "And that is not with us."

The Wizard nodded slowly.

"Madame," he said, "please prepare a warm welcome for Miss Glinda when she gets back from Munchkinland. I was thinking maybe a room in Southstairs?"

Morrible chortled. "It will be my pleasure, Your Ozness."

* * *

***cringes* Yeah. Like I said... sorry :P.**

**Love it, hate it, favourite lines?**


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: No Glinda in this chapter... I'm going to leave you in suspense for a little while longer. She'll appear again next chapter, though. Next chapter also has some fluff. This one is mostly to give you some background information on Dawyn and how she came into Elphaba and Fiyero's lives.**

* * *

**Chapter 8.**

Elphaba flew them back to the Animal hideout, careful to try and stay out of sight – using tree tops and clouds for cover. Luckily, it was a cloudy day, and Fiyero didn't think anyone had spotted them from down below, despite the fact that Elphaba was less careful in her flying than usual.

The moment they landed, Elphaba picked up her broom and strode off in the direction of her and Fiyero's home, not saying another word to the prince and not even acknowledging the presence of Dawyn, who had come out to greet them.

The Jaguar looked at the green girl's retreating back with a mixture of curiosity and worry. "Is she alright?"

"Nessarose is dead," Fiyero said quietly and Dawyn held her breath.

"Oh… I'm so sorry," she said, sympathy in her green eyes. She knew everything about Elphaba's relationship with her sister, even though she had never met Nessarose, and she understood that the young girl's death must have hit Elphaba hard.

"She's upset," Fiyero said, running a hand through his hair. "She's not really herself right now… I think she needs some time alone, to process. We couldn't stay – Glinda was there and she was afraid it could be a trap, so we had to leave right away." He sighed. "Poor Fae… she couldn't even say goodbye to her sister. It's just so unfair," he burst out, feeling like kicking something – anything. "She's been losing so many people lately, and she hardly ever gets to say goodbye or take the time to deal with it. She's always on the run, she always has to be alert, watching her back… sometimes I wish I could just _stop _things, you know? Just for a moment. Give her some time to breathe and to figure out how to deal with things. She can't go on like this, Dawyn. One day she's going to cave under all the pressure."

Dawyn sighed. "Oh, Fiyero, I know… I know how you feel." She nuzzled his side and he placed his hand on top of her head. She looked up at him. "But there's nothing we can do. You must understand that. And she's strong – stronger than anyone I know. If anyone can deal with all this, it's Elphaba. She'll be okay, Fiyero, really."

"I know." He looked at the closed door of the cottage she had disappeared into. "I just wish there was something I could do for her."

"You're doing so much for her," said Dawyn. "You know that."

"Something _more _than that," he clarified, looking back down at the Jaguar. "Something more than just being there for her and supporting her. I wish I could take away her pain, stop the people she loves from dying, keep her from getting hurt… anything. Just… more than I'm doing now. Because sometimes I feel like it doesn't make any difference at all."

"Tany, Day, and the other kids told me about you and Elphaba's visit to the orphanage this morning," Dawyn said softly. "Didn't Elphaba say the exact same thing then, about what you do for the Animals? That she felt useless?"

Fiyero grumbled, realising that the Jaguar was right and he didn't stand a chance in winning this argument. "Yes."

"Then remember what you told her," Dawyn said, "and think of that now. You can't keep people from getting hurt or from dying. You can't protect her from everything. But you must also recognise the fact that you are making a major difference in her life, Fiyero. She would never have gotten this far without you."

He nodded reluctantly and Dawyn pushed her head under his hand. "I'll go talk to her." She padded off to the cottage, slipping through the door.

She found Elphaba sitting in the window sill across the room, resting her chin on her arms as she stared out of the window without really seeing anything.

Dawyn remembered the day Elphaba had found her. She had been young and reckless back then, and she hadn't paid much attention to the Animal bans and everything that was going on in the cities. She had family living there, but she herself had grown up in the forest and it was the place she preferred. She'd just been out chasing prey when suddenly, someone threw a net over her.

She'd yelped, "Hey! Let me go!", thus giving away her identity as an Animal, and the Gale Force soldiers patrolling the forest had smirked at one another.

"An Animal," one of them had taunted, circling the trapped Jaguar. "How lovely."

"Kill it," their captain had ordered and the others had come closer, spears ready.

Dawyn had fought and clawed at them, but she was confined by the net and she could hardly even reach them. They had just been about to impale her on their spears when something came flying through the air and knocked the soldiers over.

"Let her go," the person had hissed. Dawyn remembered how startled she had been when she saw that this girl had green skin.

Even though she didn't live in the city and hadn't really been paying attention to any news, even she knew about the Wicked Witch of the West. It was whispered that she was a young sorceress with emerald green skin who had defied the Wizard openly because of the way he treated the Animals, and that she was fighting for them now. Dawyn had even heard that the Witch had saved Animals from being killed. She wasn't sure if she believed in all that, but now the proof was in front of her, menacingly waving a broom at the soldiers who were trying to kill Dawyn.

"It's the Witch!" one of the soldiers gasped and the captain yelled, "Capture her! Dead or alive, I don't care, but get her!"

The young witch, however, though a little clumsy, turned out to be skilled enough at magic to hold the soldiers off both herself and Dawyn. She fought fiercely, muttering spells and shooting magic out of the tips of her fingers. She had screamed in pain when one of the soldiers managed to bury the tip of his spear in her shoulder, but she had set her jaw and yanked it out, only to impale the soldier on his own weapon.

She had freed Dawyn, who had then proceeded to fight beside the Witch, both of them protecting the other as they held off the Gale Force. When three of them were finally dead and the other two fled in fear, Dawyn had looked at the green girl.

"Are you alright?" the Witch had asked, her eyes searching the Jaguar for any injuries.

Dawyn remembered being absolutely stunned at the question. She had not interacted with many humans in her life, but those she had met had never been particularly kind to her; and now here was this woman – no, this girl still, Dawyn thought, not even fully grown, with a deep spear wound in her shoulder… and she was asking _Dawyn _if she was alright.

"I'm fine," Dawyn had replied, slightly dazed. "Are you?"

The green girl had waved her away. "Of course. I'm Elphaba," she had introduced herself and Dawyn had bowed.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Elphaba," she had said. "My name is Dawyn, and I am forever in your debt."

Elphaba had laughed a bit nervously. "Oh, it was nothing, Dawyn. It's okay," she'd said, but Dawyn had insisted.

"Where I come from, that is how it works," she had said. "When someone saves your life, you stay with that person until you can repay the debt by saving their life in return, or until the day you die. Unless you do not want my company," she'd added. "If you prefer to stay on your own, you won't have to take me with you… but honestly, I think we'd make quite a good team."

Elphaba had hesitated.

"Well… it gets lonely sometimes," she'd admitted. "I've been on my own for so long already… or, well," she'd conceded with a short laugh, "it's only been a month or two, but it feels like it's been much longer. It _does _get lonely, and I wouldn't mind some company." She'd smiled at Dawyn. "But only if you really want to. I don't want you to feel obliged –"

"I want to," Dawyn had cut her off.

Elphaba's smile had widened. "Alright, then."

Dawyn mulled over that now as she sat down next to Elphaba and nuzzled the green girl's arm. Elphaba looked at her briefly and gave a sad smile, wrapping her arm around Dawyn's neck. Dawyn licked her cheek, not saying anything. She knew Elphaba well by know. If she wanted to talk, she'd talk; but right now, the best way for Dawyn to support her friend was to just be there for her.

After Elphaba and Dawyn had joined forces, they had grown closer and closer. They trusted each other and looked out for one another, and Dawyn knew her company had helped Elphaba, who had been, as she had admitted later, very lonely after she had had to leave her friends at Shiz behind and everyone treated her like a criminal. They helped Animals together and they always had one another's back.

They had only been friends for a little over two years, but sometimes it felt like they had known one another all their lives. They didn't need words to know what the other was feeling, just like Elphaba didn't have to say anything now for Dawyn to know how best to help her friend.

Elphaba turned her head and buried her face in Dawyn's fur, taking deep, shuddering breaths. She didn't cry. She hardly ever did. But Dawyn could feel her pain and sadness almost as if they were her own.

The Jaguar nuzzled Elphaba's cheek, comforting her silently.

She wasn't sure how long they stayed like that before Fiyero finally came in. It must have been quite a long time, because the sky outside the window had darkened and Elphaba had fallen asleep against the Jaguar's side.

It had taken Dawyn much longer to warm up to Fiyero than it had for her to befriend Elphaba. One day, Dawyn had been out in the Great Gillikin Forest with Elphaba when suddenly a man had come running towards them, shouting excitedly. Dawyn had immediately leapt between him and Elphaba, growling menacingly; and when she had glanced over her shoulder and saw that Elphaba had frozen completely at the sight of him, eyes wide, Dawyn had taken that as a sign to attack. She had bared her teeth and pounced, and only a cry from Elphaba had kept her from ripping the man's throat out.

Once the raven-haired witch had explained to Dawyn who this man was, exactly, she had refrained from attacking him again; but she had been wary of him for weeks after their first meeting, never leaving Elphaba alone with him and always eyeing him as if he were about to pull out a weapon and murder someone. He never did, of course, and eventually Dawyn had accepted him and stopped mistrusting him so openly. Even then, it took her several more months of watching him help their cause before she relented completely and they became friends. By now, though, she was almost as close to him as she was to Elphaba.

There also seemed to be some silent agreement between them to take care of their favourite green girl – whether that was by protecting her, keeping an eye on her, stop her from working too hard, or consoling her whenever she was sad or something was wrong. That, too, connected them in some way.

Dawyn turned her head to look at Fiyero now and she smiled tiredly at him.

"How is she?" he asked in a whisper.

"Asleep." Dawyn shifted a little to be able to look at Elphaba's face. She was frowning and muttering something unintelligible in her sleep, looking pained.

Fiyero gently scooped her up in his arms and carried her over to the bed in the corner of the room. He tucked her in and pressed a kiss to her hair, then turned around to face Dawyn again, giving her a faint smile. "Thank you. You know, for taking care of her… being there for her."

"Of course," Dawyn said softly. "Anytime, you know that."

Fiyero's smile was more genuine this time. "Yes. I know."

Dawyn stayed with them that night, sleeping on the floor beside the bed as Elphaba slept in Fiyero's arms.


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: Kudos and virtual pie (*cackles*) for LetWickedNeverDie for being the 100th reviewer for this story! :)**

**Azaisya: Thanks for the tip, I'm never sure how that works in English :3. It's one of the things I keep doing wrong.**

**Fae'sFlower: Hmm... close.**

**SnowQueen: You're right. Spot on. Or are you? I'm not going to tell you :P.**

* * *

**Chapter 9.**

The burial of Governor Nessarose Thropp of Munchkinland was a small and quiet affair.

Hardly anyone attended it. Glinda was there, having arranged the entire ceremony. She had brought flowers – a rose for on the coffin, a bouquet of different kinds of flowers, more roses among them, for on Nessa's grave. There was also a priest to perform the ceremony, as Glinda knew Nessarose would have wanted it. Just because Glinda herself, or Elphaba, didn't believe in the Unnamed God, didn't mean she wanted to disrespect Nessa's own wishes.

Glinda looked around her sadly. She knew Elphaba would have wanted to be here, but she doubted the green girl even knew about this ceremony; and it would have been too risky, anyway. This was a public burial place. People walked by all the time. Not even to mention the other people attending the burial – the mayor of Munchkin City, a few people who had known Nessarose since childhood, the servants and maids that had worked for the wheelchair-bound girl as she had ruled the province… and of course there was Boq.

Boq was standing in a corner, alone, staring down at the coffin, all the time. He never once moved. Glinda wondered if he was even blinking, or breathing. He was unmoving as the ceremony progressed, his face blank and his eyes dry, though she could see something in his eyes that made her suspect he was genuinely grieving for the late governor.

When the ceremony was over and the coffin had been lowered into the earth, Glinda approached him timidly. "Boq?"

He looked up at her and she recoiled a little. His eyes were almost… dead.

She gave him a sympathetic look. "You really did love her, didn't you?" she asked softly.

He shrugged listlessly.

"I don't know," he said. "I might have. She… she was sweet and kind, at first. I guess I did indeed love her, in a way… just not the way she wanted me to. And in the end she'd grown to be so mean, not just to me, but to all of us… stripping us of our rights and commanding us all the time, forcing me to stay with her… but I knew that girl I knew back at Shiz was still in there somewhere." He sighed. "And now she's gone."

Glinda placed a hand on the Munchkin's arm to express her sympathy. "I'm sorry, Boq."

"The Wicked Witch of the East, they call her." He shook his head. "She wasn't wicked. Just… lost. Not used to not getting her way. She pushed it too far, she absolutely did, but she wasn't an evil person, Glinda…"

"I know." The blonde thought of Elphie and how she was probably feeling right now, and she sighed. "I know, Boq."

He looked at her. "What's going to happen now?" he asked. "Who is going to rule Munchkinland? What will happen to our rights, our laws? Will they be restored?"

Glinda bit her lip, but she forced herself to smile brightly at him. "Oh, don't worry about any of that, Boq," she said, trying her hardest to sound reassuring. "I'll take care of everything, I promise. You'll be free again. You can go back to your family, or travel to the Emerald City or to Gillikin, whatever you want. You won't have to stay here anymore."

He nodded. "Good… that's good."

He left shortly thereafter, and Glinda realised there wasn't much reason for her to stay here, either. Nessarose had been buried. She needed to go back to the Emerald City now and make arrangements for a new Munchkin governor, among other things.

And so she flew back in her bubble, arriving at the palace shortly after dinnertime. The moment she landed, however, guards closed in on her from all angles and they pointed their rifles and spears at her.

"Excuse me?" she demanded, baffled and a little mad, too. She was exhausted from the long trip and she was starving, and she didn't have the patience to deal with this right now. "What's the meaning of this? Do you know who I am?"

"We most certainly do, Miss Glinda," one of the guards, most likely their leader, said. He made a gesture and the other guards seized her, pulling her arms behind her back.

She struggled, spluttering for them to let her go; but she stilled when Morrible suddenly appeared, looking smug.

"Thank you, gentlemen," she said, her cold, snake-like eyes on Glinda. "Glinda Upland of the Upper Uplands, you have been charged with treason. You were seen with the Wicked Witch of the West, and it was clear that it was not an attempt of you to capture her. We saw you two talking, dearie. And hugging, for that matter. We saw Prince Fiyero of the Vinkus as well, who is a traitor and an outlaw, and it was clear from the scene witnessed that you have nothing but friendly feelings for the both of them."

Glinda suddenly felt cold all over.

"Therefore," Morrible continued with an evil glint in her eye, "you are now under arrest and you will stay in Southstairs for the time being, until we figure out what we can do with you. Take her away!" she barked at the guards, who bowed and dragged Glinda with them to the dark dungeons of Southstairs.

* * *

Fiyero loved waking up with Elphaba in his arms.

He wasn't sure what it was about that that he loved so much. He just knew that when he awoke and he felt her heartbeat against his chest, the rising and falling of her own chest against his fingers, and her warm weight in his arms… he felt happy. Peaceful. It always brought a smile to his face.

She also felt so much more vulnerable and fragile when she slept. He loved holding her when she was awake, but there was always a certain tension in her body, mainly her back and shoulders, that he could never get to go away. She was always wary and vigilant of one thing or another and she never allowed herself to fully relax – unless she was asleep.

He ran his hand down her side and frowned slightly, realising why it was that she felt so delicate. He could feel every single one of her bones underneath his fingertips. He could literally count her ribs through her dress. When had she gotten so skinny? She had always been thin, especially after she had defied the Wizard and he had found her in the forest with Dawyn; but he had spent the past one and a half years keeping a close eye on her and making sure she took care of herself. When she was immersed in or worried about something, she tended to forget to look after herself and he had always made sure she slept and ate regularly.

He stroked her hip, planting a kiss on the hair next to her ear, and she yawned. Her eyelids fluttered open. "Yero?"

"Hey," he whispered. "How are you feeling?"

She blinked a few times. He could almost see the realisation of what had happened the day before dawning in her eyes and she lowered them and turned to him, burying her face in his shirt.

He gently stroked her back, whispering soothing words and sweet nothings in her ear. She squeezed her eyes shut tightly, as if she could shut out the world that way, and the knowledge that her little sister had died the day before.

Dawyn, who had slept on the floor beside them, stretched and yawned, opening her eyes as well. She sat up and nuzzled Elphaba's arm. "How is she?"

"Fine," Elphaba muttered against Fiyero's chest. "Just…" She sighed. "I don't know."

Dawyn smiled sadly. "I understand."

"Me, too." Fiyero pressed his lips to her forehead. "But it will be alright, Fae. Really."

"She's gone, Fiyero," she whispered. "It's not going to be alright. She's not coming back."

"She's not." He rubbed her arms. "But you will get better, Fae. You'll learn how to deal with this, the way you always deal with everything. You still have us," he reminded her. "We'll help you, and we won't leave you."

"Never," Dawyn agreed.

"You don't know that." Elphaba turned her head to look at the Jaguar. "What if something happens to you?" she asked softly. She looked at Fiyero. "To either of you?"

Fiyero hesitated.

"We can't promise you that nothing will happen," said Dawyn rationally. She pushed her nose against Elphaba's side. "But even if something happens to us, Elphaba, you still have so many others who care about you."

She shook her head. "It's not the same."

"It's not." Dawyn looked at the young witch, her dark eyes solemn. "But you're strong. You'd survive."

"And for now, at least," Fiyero said, "we're not going anywhere."

Elphaba burrowed deeper into his arms and they sat like that for a while before she finally detached herself from him, shaking off her brief moment of weakness and rising to her feet. "I'm going to fly out today. I want to see what's going on in the rest of Oz and I especially want to know what the Gale Force is up to."

"I'll come with you," Dawyn said immediately. The two of them often went out to scout together, Dawyn on the ground and Elphaba in the sky. They knew exactly what to do when the other was in danger and they often shared the same train of thought, communicating without words.

Fiyero would normally protest or insist on Elphaba taking him with her, but he knew that she was in good hands. Dawyn would rather die than let anything happen to Elphaba. He also knew that if he were to go with Elphaba, he would only slow her down.

That didn't mean he had to be happy about it, however.

He sighed and nodded reluctantly. "Okay. But you're not going yet," he warned them. "I'm going to make you breakfast first."

She looked impatient. "I'm not hungry."

"You're too thin. You need to gain some weight or you're going to topple over one day." Fiyero disappeared into the kitchen, making it impossible for her to argue.

She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair before starting to pace up and down the room. "I don't have time for this," she grumbled.

"He's right," Dawyn pointed out. "I can see your bones through your dress."

Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"Just let him take care of you, Elphaba." The Jaguar playfully nudged her hip. "It's what he does best."

Elphaba chuckled. "It's what he loves best, too. The idiot," she said, rolling her eyes again fondly.

"But you love him," Dawyn said with a grin and Elphaba smiled softly.

"I do," she agreed. "More than anything in the world."

After an elaborate breakfast – Fiyero made Elphaba eat an entire plate filled with pancakes, toast, and fruit before he even considered letting her go – the dark-haired witch and the Jaguar set out on their trip for the day. Fiyero, as always, went with them to see them out before he would venture out into the village to see if he could be of any help.

He kissed Elphaba gently. "I love you," he said solemnly.

As always, she smiled and kissed him again, but didn't say it back as she mounted her broom and kicked off. As she steered her broom towards the east, Dawyn sprinted off in the same direction, soon disappearing between the trees.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: Sorry I'm late again! I'm so busy with uni at the moment, and we received some bad news about my neighbour yesterday - the cancer he had about seven years ago and that cost him his larynx is now back, in his skull... I really hope he's going to be okay.**

**On a brighter note, my bachelor graduation ceremony is the day after tomorrow and the Thursday after that, I will be twenty-one! Yeesh, I'm getting so old!**

**Maddie (hey, a name buddy - almost, anyway): Your review really made me smile. Thank you so much!**

**Anyways, here's another chapter for you. I'm guessing you won't like it. Actually, I know you won't. Especially the ending - which, of course, to stay true to my name, is a cliffy. Sorry - not sorry.**

* * *

**Chapter 10.**

Glinda was shivering when she awoke, feeling cold all over. The dungeons were chilly, damp, and dark, and generally not exactly healthy for the prisoners staying there. Glinda had always hated this place, even back when she had still been Glinda the Good, living in her own quarters in the Emerald Palace, only a step below the Wizard and Madame Morrible. The Good Witch of the North. The Wizard's Grand Vizier.

What a joke.

She pulled her thin, raggedy blanket tighter around her, but it hardly did anything to warm her. She sighed, wishing she were somewhere else right now… anywhere. She should have seen this coming. She should have known that sooner or later, Morrible and the Wizard would find out where her true loyalties lay and they would punish her for it. She should have known all that and she should have acted on it. She should have left when she still had the chance.

Who cared about fame and fortune, about popularity and the love of the Ozian people, when the alternative was risking a lifetime in Southstairs?

Glinda had cared. Glinda had cared so much that she had taken the risk without even fully thinking it through, and now it could be too late. She had no illusions about what would happen to her; Morrible was not going to let her go. She wasn't entirely sure how they had found out about her and Elphaba, but Morrible had mentioned something about a spell… if she truly had seen Glinda with both Elphaba and Fiyero in Munchkinland, then the blonde was definitely in deep trouble. Morrible might even torture her in order to find out if she knew anything about Elphaba's whereabouts… Glinda shuddered at the mere thought.

But, she resolved, setting her jaw, she was not going to say anything. No matter what Morrible did to her, she would not betray her friend. Ever. She may be down here, trapped, but Elphaba was still free, and Glinda intended to keep it that way.

There was the sound of a door opening and then footsteps, echoing through the dungeons. Glinda stiffened, which seemed ridiculous – maybe they weren't even here for her. There were many more prisoners in Southstairs. And yet somehow, she sensed that they were, indeed, here for her.

She turned out to be right when two guards stopped in front of her cell and one of them opened the door. The other came in to tie her hands behind her back.

"Miss Glinda Upland," the first guard said as the second one pulled her to her feet and led her to the door of the cell. "Madame Morrible has requested your presence in the interrogation room."

Icy cold shivers ran down Glinda's back at that announcement. "The interrogation room?"

"She believes that you are holding back vital information about the whereabouts of the Wicked Witch of the West," the first guard explained almost apologetically. "I'm sorry, Miss Glinda. Orders are orders."

"And when do you listen to those orders?" Glinda asked softly. "I am still Glinda the Good. I'm still the Grand Vizier of Oz. If I ordered you to let me go now, would you listen?"

The guard hesitated.

"No," he finally admitted. "Madame Morrible and the Wizard himself have stripped you of your power as a government official. I'm very sorry, Miss Glinda."

She nodded sadly. "I see." She hadn't really expected them to listen. She knew most people must have been shocked by her 'betrayal' and there were doubtlessly still Ozians on her side, believing that she was innocent; but they would never stand up to the Wizard and Morrible. If only because no matter how much Glinda the Good had come to mean to them, their Wonderful Wizard still meant more.

She didn't protest or struggle as the two guards brought her to an large, circular room. It was equally cold in here, but Glinda wasn't sure whether her trembling was because of that, or because of Morrible's ominous presence in the room.

"Leave us," the woman commanded once Glinda had been brought in. The guards bowed and left, closing the door behind them, and Glinda carefully looked at Morrible.

The older woman smirked. "Well, well, Glinda. So this is how we meet again. I at the top of Oz, and you," she let her gaze slide down Glinda's now rather dirty and raggedy appearance, "at the bottom."

Glinda glared daggers at her.

Morrible circled the blonde girl, eyeing her up and down curiously. "I should have seen it coming. It was obvious, really, and I knew you and Elphaba were best friends at Shiz. Maybe I should have kept a closer eye on you. But it doesn't matter anymore now, does it? You've been found out, dearie. Now tell me where Elphaba is hiding."

"I don't know," Glinda declared, holding her head up high and meeting Morrible's gaze defiantly. "I don't know where she is. And even if I did, I would rather bite off my own tongue than tell you."

Morrible coloured. "That can be arranged."

Glinda let out a short laugh. "You don't scare me, Madame," she said. "Not anymore."

Morrible narrowed her eyes. She glanced around her and an evil smirk slowly formed around her lips as she walked over to the nearest wall and touched the shackles hanging there. Her smirk widened as she picked up one of the knives residing right next to the shackles. She turned it around in her hands before turning and looking back at Glinda with a malicious glint in her eyes.

"We'll see about that."

No matter how many times Glinda told herself not to scream, she couldn't help it.

* * *

As they flew and ran, respectively, Elphaba and Dawyn took mental notes of any threats nearby, as they always did.

Their main goal was to defend the Animal hideouts. If there were any Gale Force patrols or other threats approaching one or more of the hideouts, they usually found a way to either eliminate the threat or steer it in a different direction. This time, they had discovered several Gale Force soldiers. There were a few patrols on the Yellow Brick Road – which Elphaba warned Dawyn about, so that the Jaguar could avoid them by staying in the forest beside the road; they didn't want Dawyn to get caught, after all – and a group of them was combing out part of the Great Gillikin Forest, but thankfully, they weren't anywhere near any of the Animal hideouts nearby.

Elphaba came down at some point to meet up with Dawyn, who told the green girl everything she had overheard when she had been sneaking around some villages.

"Munchkinland is in chaos," Dawyn said. "With their governor gone, everyone is trying to claim power. They're calling for Glinda, wanting her help, but she hasn't shown up yet – she's probably busy with other things."

Elphaba chewed her lip thoughtfully, a look of mild worry in her eyes. "But what could Glin possibly be so occupied with?" she asked. "Munchkinland falling apart sounds pretty serious. Is there anything else going on in Oz that we don't know about that needs Glinda's attention?"

Dawyn shrugged helplessly. "Not that I've heard. Everyone is talking about the hurricane and Nessarose's death, as well as your appearance in Munchkinland the other day. I haven't heard anything about other pressing matters."

Elphaba thought about that. "Glin would never leave the Munchkins in peril if she could help it," she said. "She'd fly straight over in that ridiculous bubble of hers to go and help them. What if something happened to her?"

"She's Glinda the Good," Dawyn reminded her friend. "What in Oz could have happened to her? Everyone loves her."

Elphaba nodded, but she was not convinced. "Let's travel closer to the Emerald City," she said. "I want to see if there are any other rumours there… maybe I can find something out about what Glin is up to."

Dawyn didn't think that was a particularly good idea. The Emerald City was by far the most dangerous place for Elphaba, given the fact that it was crawling with Gale Force soldiers and the Wizard's propaganda about the Wicked Witch of the West was strongest there. It was also the most dangerous place for Animals, since they were no longer allowed to live in the City and so an Animal roaming the streets there was a rare sight. She told Elphaba as much, but the raven-haired witch only said that Dawyn could stay outside the City if she wanted to.

"I'm not planning on actually going _into _the City," Elphaba explained. "But news doesn't travel _that _fast in Oz and if anything happened in the City, we're more likely to find out about it if we travel closer to it. Just stay out of sight and be careful, alright? I'll see what I can find out."

Dawyn just snorted. "I'm not staying out of sight when you are possibly in danger, Elphaba," she said, the tone of her voice making it clear that this topic was not up for discussion. "I'm coming with you. I'll be right behind you – or below you – all the time."

Elphaba sighed. "I'm not sure if I should thank you or slap you right now."

Dawyn chuckled. "I'd prefer you thanking me," she said, amused, "but you get to pick. As long as you do realise that I'm not the only stubborn one around here."

Elphaba poked out her tongue before mounting her broom again and shooting high up into the sky.

She hovered in the air nearby as she watched Dawyn eavesdropping on several people, sneaking through the high grass beside the road and lurking underneath windows.

The Jaguar headed back for the woods after a while and Elphaba followed her, eager to hear what Dawyn had heard; but then, suddenly, there were shouts from the village below, people pointing at her. She swore when she realised they had spotted her.

She immediately steered away, but the villagers were already collecting weapons, screaming and shouting at one another. She had to dodge a few arrows shot at her and she swore again. She had to get out of here before any of them hit her.

Just then, some men appeared with flaming arrows, pointing them at her. She headed for the forest, bending over her broom to decrease the chances of her getting hit, but then she felt a jolt and she knew something was wrong.

She looked over her shoulder. The twigs at the end of her broom were on fire, a burning arrow still sticking out of them.

She tried to keep the broom under control, but it started spinning and she could hardly handle it. She jerked it to point in the direction of the woods again and concentrated on landing safely and as far away from the murderous villagers as possible; but her broom had developed a will of its own. She was still only brushing the tops of the highest trees when it gave in completely and she went down.

Dawyn saw her friend fall and she shouted her name. She sprinted to the spot where Elphaba would land, but she was too late to catch the dark-haired witch. Instead, she arrived just in time to see Elphaba crashing through the trees and hitting the ground with a sickening noise of impact, the still-burning broom snapping into two pieces as it hit the forest floor beside her.

Dawyn ran over to the green girl and nuzzled her cheek. "Elphaba?"

Elphaba moaned and stirred slightly and Dawyn felt a rush of relief washing over her. At least she wasn't dead… but she could tell that her friend wasn't alright, either. She had to get her back to the Animal hideout.

Her head whipped around when she heard the snapping of branches and voices shouting, and mere moments later, some of the men from the village appeared, carrying torches, pitchforks, and crossbows.

Dawyn bared her teeth.

They hesitated.

"If you so much as _touch _her," the Jaguar hissed, her ears flat against her head as she moved to stand in between the villagers and Elphaba, her body tense and ready to attack, "I promise you that you will regret it."

"It's an Animal," one of the men whispered.

"Kill them both!" another yelled.

Dawyn snarled.

The men attacked.

* * *

**Review? ^_^ I'll reward you with some virtual birthday cake later this week!**


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: You're all so sweet and generous, giving me cake and refraining from attacking me... and because some of you asked me so very nicely on Twitter, here is an early update!**

**There's no Glinda in this one, but there will be in the next one - which I will probably post on Tuesday, since tomorrow, with my bachelor graduation ceremony, will be a pretty busy day for me.**

* * *

**Chapter 11.**

Elphaba wasn't entirely conscious. Not all the time, anyway. Her fall from the sky had knocked the air straight out of her lungs and she was sure she had broken, or at the very least bruised, a couple of ribs… not to mention that she had hit her head pretty hard. She felt weak and her body ached all over as she drifted in and out of consciousness, only catching glimpses of what was going on in front of her.

The men were attacking Dawyn, but the Jaguar was fighting them with all she had, snarling and biting, lashing out at them with her claws. She slashed one man's stomach and shot at another's throat. He tried to impale her on his pitchfork, but she leapt out of the way and bit his leg, pulling him off his feet.

Another one of them advanced on Elphaba, but Dawyn jumped in between them, growling. He stopped and tried to shoot her with his crossbow. She sunk her teeth into his shoulder and threw him against the other men, sending them all toppling to the floor.

She bared her teeth again, hissing and growling. "You're not getting her," she snarled. "Never. So either you go back home now, or I swear to Oz I will rip every single one of you to pieces."

They hesitated, looking at one another. Dawyn growled again, low in her throat, and the men cast another glance in the direction of the Witch before slowly stepping back. They backed away and then turned around and ran, soon disappearing from sight.

Dawyn was panting slightly as she leant down to nuzzle Elphaba's face again. "Elphaba?"

"Yeah," the green girl murmured, her eyes opening briefly.

Dawyn licked her cheek gently. "Don't worry, you're going to be okay," she said. "Can you move?"

"Sure." Elphaba tried to, but immediately winced at the pain and Dawyn sighed.

"Stop being stubborn," she said sternly. "Please. It's not helping anyone." She carefully slid her head under Elphaba's body and slowly moved and wiggled until the young witch was sprawled out on her back and Dawyn could carry her.

"I know you're in pain," the Jaguar said over her shoulder, "but try to hold on, Elphaba. Just grab my fur, or my neck, or… anything. I don't mind. Just don't fall off. I'll go slowly, but I can't move _too _slowly – there are still Ozians and Gale Force soldiers out there who want to get you."

"I know," Elphaba mumbled. "I'll hold on."

"If you're slipping away or you need to stop, warn me in time." With that, Dawyn started walking. When she felt Elphaba's arms around her neck, she picked up the pace until she was running, not as fast as she could, but still running, back in the direction of the Animal hideout where Doctor Dillamond would be. He could heal Elphaba, she was sure of it… or she hoped so, anyway.

She grimaced at the thought of Fiyero, back at the village. He would be worried sick once they got back – and with reason, Dawyn couldn't help but think. Without slowing down, she glanced over her shoulder once. Elphaba's grip around her neck had loosened and the green girl appeared to be unconscious again.

Dawyn had no idea how badly her friend had been injured because of her fall, but she had been up pretty high and the impact had been hard. She just hoped that once she'd get Elphaba to the hospital at the hideout, Dillamond and the other doctors would be able to help her.

They had to cross a road a few times and Dawyn had to pay attention to her surroundings to prevent anyone from spotting them. Elphaba awoke every now and then and every time Dawyn asked her how she was doing, the response was an indignant, "Fine", but the Jaguar knew better.

They _were _spotted at some point, by a man on a horse; and Dawyn cursed under her breath.

"Elphaba, I have to run," she said urgently. "Can you hold on?"

She felt the green girl nodding weakly. "I've got you."

Dawyn took a deep breath and sprinted off. The man chased after her on his horse, shouting things at the top of his lungs, but Dawyn couldn't even hear what he was saying. Luckily, she was much faster than his horse was and she managed to shake him off relatively easily – which was good, because she already felt Elphaba's grip on her slowly loosening and she realised the dark-haired witch was probably falling unconscious again.

By the time they finally reached the Animal hideout, evening was falling and Dawyn was absolutely exhausted, but she pressed on. She ran through the village and straight to the hospital, where she found both Dr. Dillamond and Fiyero, who was helping out there.

He smiled at first when he saw her. "Dawyn!" Then, however, he realised what she had on her back, and his smile immediately faded. "Oh my Oz…" He suddenly went very pale. "Is she…"

"She's alive," Dawyn assured him, looking at Dillamond, who got the hint and helped the green girl off the Jaguar's back and onto a stretcher.

He looked at Dawyn. "What happened?"

"A bunch of angry villagers saw us," Dawyn said, giving them the brief version. "They started shooting burning arrows at Elphaba, and one of them set the back of her broom on fire. She lost control and crashed."

She could see that Fiyero was close to bursting into tears and she pushed her head against his hand. "Fiyero."

He looked down at her, his eyes wide, and she met them calmly. "Keep yourself together," Dawyn said. "She needs you right now."

As if that was her cue, Elphaba's eyes slowly opened and she stared at them all, dazed. When her gaze fell on Fiyero, she murmured, "Yero?"

"I'm right here," he said, trying to stop his voice from trembling. He took her hand in his and squeezed softly. "You're going to be alright, Fae."

"I know," she muttered, frowning slightly. "I'm fine."

He swallowed, unsure of whether he should feel reassured by that or not. On the one hand, she would probably tell him she was fine even if she was taking her final breath; but on the other hand, at least she still had enough strength to tell him that she was fine.

"Yero?" she said again and he brought their joined hands up to his lips to kiss the back of her hand.

"Yes?"

"I love you, too."

"No." He shook his head violently, feeling tears stinging his eyes. "Don't say it, Fae. Not now. Not yet. Say it when you're better."

Dawyn realised why he was so upset. She knew about Fiyero and Elphaba's strange agreement – he always told her he loved her before she left, and she always told him after she'd come back. They had always done it like that because they didn't want it to sound like a goodbye… but Elphaba saying it now _did _sound like a goodbye, and it looked like it was all Fiyero could do not to break down right there and then.

Elphaba drifted back into unconsciousness and Dr. Dillamond took her away to a room in the back, promising he'd take good care of her.

They stayed away for a long while and all this time, Fiyero was pacing up and down the room, chewing his nails and his bottom lip, running his fingers through his hair, stopping at the window to look out of it for a moment without really seeing anything before moving back and pacing to the other side of the room again. It tired Dawyn just looking at it, but she understood his anxiety.

"Fiyero," she said at some point.

He stopped and looked at her.

"She'll be alright," Dawyn said. "I've told you this before – she's strong. She's a survivor."

"I know." He resumed his pacing. "But do those things really help you when you fall off a broomstick and plummet to the ground? You said she was still as high as the trees!"

"They weren't _very _high trees," Dawyn tried weakly, but Fiyero just shook his head.

"If anything happens to her," he said, and she could hear the catch in his voice. "If she dies…"

"She's not going to die." Dawyn rubbed her head against his hip. "Stop worrying about things that are not going to happen. Focus on the here and now. She's still alive, and if anyone can help her, it's Doctor Dillamond, right? Right. Calm down."

It took Dillamond another half hour or so to emerge from the back room and when he did, Fiyero pounced on him.

"And?" he asked anxiously. "How is she? Will she be okay?"

Dillamond removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"For someone in her condition, she's doing surprisingly well," he said, looking at Fiyero. "She's got three bruised ribs and one broken one, a broken collarbone, a sprained wrist, a dislocated shoulder, a dislocated knee, a broken shin, and a concussion… but there seems to be no internal injury. I gave her something against the pain, which might have been a mistake, because now she's feeling better and insisting she's fine and she wants to get out of here."

Dawyn couldn't help but smile. "That does sound like her."

Fiyero's knees buckled with relief and he sagged against the wall, breathing hard. "Can I see her?"

Dillamond nodded. "In theory, she doesn't _have_ to stay here," he said. "As long as she rests, it doesn't matter whether she's here or at your home – for as far as I can tell, her life is no longer in danger. But she _has _to rest, Fiyero. She has to. If you don't think you can make her do that – which I would find perfectly understandable – then I'm going to keep her here."

Fiyero exchanged a look with Dawyn and they both nodded.

"We can handle her," Dawyn said. "Between the two of us, she won't stand a chance."

Dillamond chuckled. "Good. Come with me, Fiyero, I'll take you to her."

She was sitting up in the bed, her right arm in a sling and her ribcage, wrist, and leg bandaged up tightly. When Dillamond saw her, he cast his eyes heavenward.

"Did I tell you that you were allowed to sit up?" he asked in exasperation.

She grinned at him. "No, I think you said that I was _not _allowed to sit up."

Dillamond heaved a deep sigh. Elphaba just smirked slightly.

When she saw Fiyero enter behind Doctor Dillamond, however, her smirk transformed into a soft smile. "Hey."

He didn't say anything as he crossed the room and gingerly wrapped her into his arms, holding her to him.

She closed her eyes and leant her head against his shoulder. "I'm sorry I scared you."

He huffed a laugh. "By now I should be used to you nearly giving me heart attacks."

She chuckled softly. "Remember that time I didn't come home until the middle of the night because I was hiding from some Gale Force soldiers?"

"And when you did come in, I nearly beat you down with a chair because I thought you were a Gale Force soldier yourself." He shook his head. "I remember."

"Or that time when that bullet hit me in the side and you thought I was dying?"

He cringed. "Please don't remind me of that."

She opened her eyes to look at him. "I'm not so easily killed, Yero. You should know that by now."

"I know." He shook his head. "But you come so awfully close sometimes."

She kissed him gently. "Can I say it now?"

He chuckled. It came out a little choked because of the tears he was holding back, but he didn't want to cry in front of her. "You can say it."

"I love you, too."

He made a noise in his throat and buried his face in her hair, holding her as tightly as he dared. He was actually hurting her a little, but she didn't say anything. She knew him and everything about him right now – the look in his eyes, the slight shaking of his hands, his body language – told her how worried he had been about her, exactly, and so she understood that he needed this.

He pulled away after a while, trying to give her a reassuring smile, but failing. She laid her hand against the side of his face.

"Yero…" she whispered. "I'm okay, really. And it's okay for you to cry, you know. I know how worried you must have been just now."

He sniffled, but swallowed his tears.

"Come on," he said instead, his voice not quite sounding as his own. "Let's take you home."

Her eyes lit up. "I can go home?"

"If you rest," Doctor Dillamond spoke up sternly from behind Fiyero. "You need lots and lots of rest, Elphaba."

She grimaced, but Fiyero nodded firmly.

"We'll make her rest."

The Goat handed Fiyero a small bag. "Medication," he clarified. "It's for the pain. She'll need two pills three times a day, but if the pain is very bad, you can increase the dosage. I put in a note and if you have any questions, you can always come and find me."

Fiyero nodded and thanked the doctor. Then he scooped the young witch up in his arms and carried her out of the room.

* * *

**Comments? Favourite lines? :)**


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: Thank you all for the congratulations :).**

**Ozzie: It doesn't always. Only when I'm in a good and very generous mood :P.**

**You all keep saying this... thing... that is a compliment to me... but every time someone says it, I feel bad, because... argh, I can't tell you, but you'll find out what I mean soon enough.**

**Last but most definitely not least... even though he will never read this, I would like to dedicate this chapter to Ad, my neighbour. Today we heard from his wife that the cancer is... well, everywhere, really, and he is dying. It's horrible news, and we're all very sad about it.**

* * *

**Chapter 12.**

When Dawyn came in sight, Elphaba urged Fiyero to put her down and she put her arms around the Jaguar, hugging her tightly.

"Thank you," she said sincerely. "If it weren't for you, I'd be dead right now."

Dawyn smiled and gingerly rubbed her head against Elphaba's hand. "You're welcome, Elphaba. I owe you a debt, remember?"

Elphaba nodded. "We're even now," she said. "I saved your life, and now you saved mine."

Dawyn shook her head. "That was different," she said. "You saved me when you didn't even know me. You risked your own life…"

"So did you."

"Not really." The Jaguar snorted. "A few men with pitchforks? Please. They couldn't have hurt me if they'd tried."

"I think they _did _try, Dawyn."

Dawyn rolled her eyes. "That's beside the point."

Elphaba raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not leaving your side, if that's what you're saying," Dawyn said, raising her chin. "I don't consider my debt to you fulfilled, Elphaba. Not by far. This was nothing. You're stuck with me."

Elphaba smiled a little. "I still think we're even now," she said. "And if it were up to me, you could go, if you wanted to…"

"I always could," Dawyn reminded her. "But I never have."

"No…" Elphaba reached out to run her fingers through Dawyn's fur. "You know you're free to go if you want to, but… but I'm really glad you're staying. I don't think I could miss you."

"Of course you could." Dawyn licked her friend's hand. "But you don't have to. I'm not going anywhere."

Fiyero lifted Elphaba up in his arms again and Dawyn walked right beside them as he carried the green girl back to their cottage. Dawyn hurried out in front of them to open the door and she watched as Fiyero gently laid Elphaba down on the bed, covering her with a blanket.

"There," he said. "Try to get some sleep."

She moaned. "But I'm not tired!"

Dawyn sniggered. "Sweet Oz, Elphaba, I don't think I've ever heard anyone sound more like a five-year-old than you did just now. Not even Fiyero. And trust me, that says something."

"Hey!" Fiyero protested.

Elphaba glared at the Jaguar. Dawyn looked right back, amused.

That was another reason why they were such good friends, Fiyero thought to himself as he watched them. Elphaba was the Wicked Witch of the West – a powerful sorceress, her tongue at least as sharp as the knives she sometimes carried. Dawyn was a predator, large and agile, with a dangerous set of teeth and claws. They would both be considered threatening by most people.

Despite that fact, though, neither one of them was the slightest bit scared of the other. Even Fiyero sometimes felt intimidated when Dawyn snarled or when Elphaba got so angry she lost control of her powers, but Dawyn and Elphaba were completely unfazed by one another. When Dawyn got mad and leapt forward to attack, Elphaba would barely even blink; and whenever Elphaba was furiously screeching curses at the top of her lungs, emerald sparks fluttering around her fingertips, Dawyn would merely roll her eyes and bluntly tell her friend to calm down.

"Just give in already, Fae," Fiyero said, gently pushing her down. "You're not going to win this one."

She grumbled something under her breath. Then she perked up, looking at Dawyn.

"You haven't told me yet what you've found out when you were eavesdropping on the villagers," she said. "Was there any news about Glinda?"

There _had_, in fact, been news about Glinda; but Dawyn wasn't going to tell her friend that. Not now. She knew that if she told Elphaba what she had heard, the dark-haired witch would immediately set out on some crazy rescuing mission, and Elphaba needed to rest and heal first or she could get herself killed.

"I'm not telling you," Dawyn declared, raising her head defiantly. "Not until you sleep and take it easy for a few days."

Elphaba glowered. Dawyn pretended not to see.

Finally, the green girl heaved a long and irritable sigh. "Fine. If you're going to be like this…" She obediently closed her eyes and Fiyero smiled, leaning down to press a soft kiss to her forehead.

When they were fairly sure Elphaba was, indeed, asleep, Fiyero took Dawyn outside to talk.

"What did you find out about Glinda?" he asked, immediately getting to the point.

Dawyn's face became very serious. "It's not good, Fiyero," she said, trying to prepare him for the bad news. "It appears Madame Morrible and the Wizard have somehow found out about her friendship with you and Elphaba. I don't know how, exactly, but apparently, they have seen you three together in Munchkinland, right after Nessarose was killed by that house."

Fiyero sucked in his breath, already dreading what was to come next.

"She's been imprisoned," Dawyn said softly. "She's currently in Southstairs. There's not going to be a trial. She's being interrogated about her knowledge of your whereabouts – yours and Elphaba's. She doesn't know, of course, but…" She trailed off.

Fiyero rubbed his forehead tiredly. He could guess where this was going.

"There are rumours," Dawyn said. "I don't know which ones are true. Some say that Morrible is torturing her or that Glinda will be put to death soon for helping Elphaba. Others say that she has already escaped using her magical powers, but…"

"But we both know Glinda hardly has any magical powers at all," Fiyero finished for her, "so that theory seems highly unlikely." He pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes for a moment. "Oz, if Fae hears about this…"

"We shouldn't tell her," Dawyn said. "Not until she's better."

"But Glinda –"

"The only thing Elphaba would accomplish if she set out to rescue Glinda now is a cell beside Glinda in Southstairs," Dawyn snapped. "You know that as well as I do. She's in no condition to rescue anyone right now."

"I know." Fiyero looked at her earnestly. "But maybe I should go."

Dawyn looked at him, her eyes wide. "What?"

"She's our best friend, Dawyn," he tried to explain. "She's in danger, maybe even in pain, because of us. We can't just leave her there!"

Dawyn shook her head. "Elphaba would kill you. And what were you going to do, anyway?" she wanted to know. "Make your way into Southstairs and save Glinda? How? How in Oz are you going to get past a few dozen Gale Force soldiers, sneak into the best-guarded prison of Oz, kidnap the most important prisoner there, and get her out safely and all the way back to this village? You don't have any magic. You don't even have claws or teeth."

"I have a sword –"

Dawyn snorted. "No offense, Fiyero, but I've seen you with that sword. I'm not saying you're bad, but you're not good enough to slay all those guards by yourself."

He hung his head, defeated. "I know."

"We'll tell Elphaba later," Dawyn decided. "Once the worst of her injuries have healed. We'll all go, so that we can help her and protect her if needed, and we'll free Glinda, Fiyero, don't worry. She'll just have to hold on a little bit longer in there."

Fiyero stared off into the distance, feeling awful.

He hoped they wouldn't be too late.

* * *

When the door to Glinda's cell opened, she flinched. "Leave me alone."

"Calm down, Lady Glinda. I'm not here to hurt you." The guard entered her cell and carefully placed a tray on the floor. "I'm just here to bring you something to eat."

She watched him warily.

There were two kinds of guards here in Southstairs, Glinda had found. Some of them were nice enough to her. They knew she had been their Grand Vizier and they still respected her, despite everything. They didn't care for her enough to help her escape or to refrain from hurting her when Morrible ordered them to, but at least they were civil and gave her space.

The other kind was much less pleasant. They were the ones trying to enter her cell in the middle of the night, eyes gleaming. The ones that touched her in one way or another – greedily, with their hands, or with a malicious glint in their eyes as they slid the tips of their swords or knives along her skin. So far, they hadn't gotten their way with her yet – the other guards usually called their colleagues to order, stopping them and ushering them out of her cell – but she had no doubt in her mind that if only she would be down here long enough, they'd succeed eventually.

The mere thought made her shudder.

"Enjoy your meal, Lady Glinda." The guard moved out of her cell again, but hesitated in the doorway.

"Don't worry," he said finally. "I know Todeon and Payne are on duty again tonight, but I'll keep them away from you, I promise."

She couldn't bear to look up, but she did whisper a sincere, "Thank you".

The guard smiled at her and closed her cell door again, locking it before moving away. Glinda huddled in the corner for a while longer. Then her appetite won over her wariness and she slowly approached the tray, studying it carefully.

The bread was not mouldy for once. There was cold tea and a chunk of cheese, as well as the bread, and she almost laughed out loud. Who could have guessed that Glinda the Good, once Galinda Upland of the Upper Uplands, would ever end up in a prison cell, eating mouldy bread and dry pieces of cheese? She certainly couldn't have.

She heaved a shuddery sigh and began to eat.

Her eyes had gotten used to the darkness after a while, but she still could not distinguish everything. The cold had her freezing all the time in her gown and thin blanket, and the dampness had given her a nasty cold. Her head was pounding all the time. Her hand, though bandaged up, still stung and hurt badly from when Morrible had driven a knife straight through it.

She brought her good hand up to her shoulder, feeling the burning of the whiplashes Morrible had given her. By now, all the pain she had felt was nothing more than a dull ache. She felt numb. Morrible had hurt her only that one day. After that, she had left Glinda alone in her cell. The blonde girl hadn't seen Morrible for a couple of days now, and she was worried about what would happen if the old fish came back for her.

Would she be killed? Tortured again?

When would this finally end?

She ate. She drank. When she was finished, she slowly made her way back to the cot in the corner, pulling the blanket as tightly around her as possible as she closed her eyes and tried to go to sleep.

She thought of Elphaba, of Fiyero, of her parents and everyone else she cared about, and she cried.


	13. Chapter 13

**AN: An update on my 21st birthday! Yay :). And it has one of my beloved cliffies, too!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 13.**

"Ugh." Elphaba groaned as Fiyero gently set her back down on the edge of her bed. "I'm so sick of this."

"It's been two days," Dawyn pointed out drily as Fiyero sat down behind Elphaba to dry her hair. "You can't start complaining until you've been resting for at least a week. Just so you know."

Elphaba grumbled something under her breath and Fiyero chuckled, planting a kiss on the top of her head from behind her. "I know you hate staying down, Fae, but it's for the best. And besides – the more you rest now, the sooner you'll be up and about again."

"I'd have been up and about two days ago," Elphaba said testily, "if you two weren't treating me like a baby."

Fiyero put the towel away and Dawyn brought him a hairbrush, with which he started gently untangling Elphaba's hair. "Did you take your pain medication?"

"I don't need pain medication," Elphaba declared, attempting to cross her arms defiantly. Given the fact that her right arm was in a sling due to her broken collarbone and dislocated shoulder, and her left wrist was wrapped up in a tight bandage because of her sprained wrist, she failed miserably at that; and so she settled for glowering at both Dawyn and Fiyero instead. "I'm fine."

Dawyn sighed irritably. "Elphaba, you were badly hurt. Dillamond prescribed you pain medication for a reason."

The green girl shook her head stubbornly. "I'm _fine_."

"Great." Dawyn narrowed her eyes at her friend. "Suit yourself. But mark my words – you will take that pain medication before this day is over, I can guarantee you that."

"Is that a challenge?" Elphaba asked, raising an eyebrow.

Fiyero sighed. "Guys…"

Dawyn kept her mouth shut and Elphaba went back to glowering.

Within an hour or so, however, the young witch slowly grew quieter; and by dinnertime she was looking pale and grimacing in pain. She was still too stubborn to say a word, however.

When Fiyero, who had spent the afternoon helping out in the village, came home, he glanced at Elphaba once and then heaved a deep sigh. He filled a glass with water and silently handed it to the green girl, along with a couple of pills.

She glared at him.

He quirked an eyebrow.

She sighed and gave in, taking the pills and the water from him. He smiled and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Don't tell Dawyn," she whispered, glancing at the Jaguar, who was sleeping on the couch.

He grinned. "Oz, Fae, you're incorrigible." He kissed her temple and helped her lie back down. "It's okay to be in pain, you know. You're hurt. You're not weak – you're just human."

She grumbled. "I don't want to be human."

He laughed and climbed into the bed with her, pulling her into his arms. "How bad is the pain?"

"It's fine."

He didn't say anything to that. He knew he didn't have to, and he was right. It took her only a few moments to admit grudgingly, "Kind of bad."

"Kind of?"

An irritable sigh. "I feel like I've been run over by a herd of horses, okay?"

He pressed another kiss to her hair. "Was that so hard to admit?"

"Yes."

He laughed and stroked her hair until the pain medication kicked in and she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Fiyero and Dawyn managed to keep Elphaba in bed for over a week, which they thought to be quite the accomplishment. They took turns watching her, not ever leaving her alone for fear of her getting up instead of staying put, no matter how loudly she complained about them 'babysitting' her and her not having any privacy. They insisted on feeding her, Fiyero helped her bathe, and Dr. Dillamond stopped by every day to check up on her.

One morning, however, she awoke with a cry, suddenly sitting up in her bed, her heart pounding in her chest.

Dawyn, who was on 'duty' to watch Elphaba at the moment, immediately leapt to her side. "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?" she asked gently, but Elphaba shook her head, her fingers shaking as she ran them through her hair.

"Glinda," she whispered hoarsely and Dawyn stiffened.

"What?"

"Glinda is in danger." Elphaba shuddered. "I had a… I don't know, a…"

"Dream?" Dawyn supplied, but Elphaba shook her head.

"It wasn't just a dream," she said, her voice unsteady, but the certainty behind her statement was clear. "It was more than that. I think it was a vision, or something… I don't know." She looked at Dawyn. "It was like that time I could feel that Nessa…" She trailed off, but Dawyn did not need her to finish.

Elphaba's breathing quickened as she realised the implications of this. "Oh, sweet Oz," she whispered, horrified. "What if Glinda…" She threw the blankets back and made to stand up. "I have to get to her. I have to save her!"

"Elphaba!" Dawyn pushed her down. "No! You can't," she said almost desperately. "You're still too badly hurt. If you go now, you'll get yourself killed!"

"Better me than her!" Elphaba shouted back.

Dawyn snarled. "For Oz's sake, Elphaba – if you go to the Emerald City now, it will be you _and _her!"

"She's my best friend and she might be hurt – and if she is, it will be because of me!"

Fiyero, who had been outside in the garden and was alarmed by the shouting, barged into the cottage. "What's going on?" he asked. When he saw how obviously upset Elphaba was, he immediately moved over to the bed to pull her into his arms, running his hand up and down her upper arm. "Fae? What's wrong?"

"I had a vision," she said, raising her dark brown eyes to meet his blue ones. "Glinda is in danger."

He exchanged a glance with Dawyn – something which did not go unnoticed by the green girl.

"What?" she demanded. "There's something you're not telling me, isn't there? Spit it out!"

When Dawyn did not immediately reply, Elphaba turned her head to look at the prince sitting next to her. "Fiyero?"

It was Dawyn who spoke up first, though.

"After you had gotten hurt, you asked me if I had picked up any news about Glinda in the villages," she said softly. "Remember?"

Elphaba nodded wordlessly, a sense of dread settling in her stomach. She unconsciously tightened her grip on Fiyero's hand. He gently squeezed back in an attempt to reassure her.

Dawyn lowered her gaze. "Glinda is in Southstairs."

It took a few moments for this to sink in.

Then Elphaba exploded.

"She's in _Southstairs_?!" she shouted, sitting up and shrugging Fiyero off even as pain ripped through her painful ribs. "My best friend is in Southstairs – she has been for over a _week _already – and you didn't even _tell _me?!"

"This is why we didn't tell you before," Dawyn said calmly. "You would have insisted on leaving and we couldn't let you, Elphaba. You'd have gotten yourself killed. The only result would be you going crazy with worry over Glinda while you were forced to stay here."

Elphaba's dark eyes were ablaze and her back was stiff, her entire posture tense and rigid. "What is she in Southstairs for?" she asked in a low voice.

Dawyn hesitated.

"I'm not entirely sure," she said finally. "But from what I heard… it seems like Morrible and the Wizard found out about her connection to you and Fiyero."

It felt like someone punched her in the stomach.

Fiyero watched the blood drain from her face and he touched her shoulder gently, trying to calm her down. "Sweetheart –"

"I told you this, Fiyero," she hissed, forcefully pulling away from him and huddling in the corner of her bed, glaring at both him and Dawyn with accusing eyes. "I _told _you. It's me, don't you see? It's because of me. My mother, my father, Nessa, Merly and all those other Animals, Glinda… it was _all _because of me. Do you see it now? I'm a curse, Fiyero!" She leapt off the bed onto her right leg – the one that wasn't broken – and stumbled across the room, gritting her teeth in pain, but not making a sound. It was what she deserved, after all. That's all she had been born for – pain. To be in pain herself and to cause pain to everyone who tried to get even a little bit too close to her.

She grabbed the Grimmerie and whirled around, facing them both with flaming eyes. "But I'm ending this. Right here, right now. I'm not letting anyone else get hurt."

"Fae?" She could see the panic in Fiyero's eyes; but before he could continue, Dawyn stepped forward, blocking Elphaba's path.

"Calm down," the Jaguar said firmly. "Elphaba, none of this is your fault and you need to stop this ridiculous nonsense _right now_!"

That shut the dark-haired witch up. She stared at Dawyn wide-eyed.

"We both know you're not cursed." Dawyn took the magic book away from her friend and put it back down on the table. "Glinda chose to stay on your side, just like your mother chose to chew those milk flowers and Nessa chose to be a bitch – excuse my wording, but let's be honest here, that's what she was. Actions have consequences. And I'm not saying that any of them should have chosen a different path; I'm saying that they were all aware of the risks their behaviour brought with them, and they were willing to take those risks. Don't you think Glinda knew when she stayed behind at the palace, when she helped you and didn't turn you in, that this could happen?"

Elphaba's eyes had slowly filled with tears. "But –"

"We will go and save Glinda," Fiyero said from where he was still sitting on the bed, his voice trembling and his eyes anxious. "We will, Fae, I promise. We'll help you, Dawyn and I. But we can't let you go. Not now, not alone, and not when you're hurt. You'd never make it, Elphaba, and you know that, too. You know we love you." His voice broke. "We can't lose you."

She hesitated. Hearing him talk like that, seeing the pain and worry and love in his eyes… it always threw her off. She tended to forget too easily that she had people who loved her now, people who cared enough to want to take care of her and keep her safe.

She slowly let out a breath she hadn't even realised she was holding. "Okay," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I… I guess you're right. I'm sorry."

Dawyn nuzzled her hand to let her know that it was alright and she let Elphaba lean on her, taking her back to the bed.

Fiyero didn't touch her; he just watched her warily. "You're not convinced, are you?"

She sighed. "Yero –"

"I understand, Fae. I do." He took her hands in his, absently rubbing his thumbs over her knuckles. "I just… I wish you would think about these things first, before rushing into danger without a second thought. I wish I could make you see how I feel about you… how I would feel if something happened to you. I wish I could make you realise how wrong you are, that none of those things was ever your fault, and that there is nothing _wrong _with you. Oz, Elphaba…" He shook his head, not really knowing what else to say, how to make her understand. He knew it wasn't this easy. He couldn't make her see any of those things if she herself wasn't willing – or able – to see them.

Eventually, he gently but firmly forced her back to bed and he and Dawyn stepped out of the house for a moment.

Fiyero leant against the wall and moaned, burying his face in his hands. "She's going to do something stupid, isn't she?" It wasn't even really a question. They both knew this.

"She is." Dawyn looked at the door thoughtfully. "We have to do something."

Fiyero nodded. "We do." He pushed himself away from the wall. "Wait here. I'll be right back. Keep an eye on her, will you?"

Dawyn watched, puzzled, as the prince hurried away. She re-entered the cottage and paced up and down until Fiyero returned, with Doctor Dillamond behind him.

Fiyero ran his hand over Elphaba's hair. "Fae?" he whispered. "Dillamond is here to check up on you."

She frowned slightly. "I thought he wouldn't stop by until tonight."

"I went to get him," Fiyero confessed. "I was worried you might have damaged something when you put weight on your injured leg just now."

She sighed irritably, but allowed him to help her up and watched without a word as Dillamond examined her.

The Goat looked at Fiyero, who gave him an imperceptible nod.

"I want to take you back to the clinic with me for observation, Elphaba," Dillamond told her. "I want to make sure you didn't do any permanent damage."

She scowled and already opened her mouth to protest, but one look at the three stern faces around her was enough for her to realise that it would be of no use. She closed her mouth and sulked, crossing her arms. "Fine."

Fiyero and Dawyn helped her out of bed and Fiyero scooped her into his arms and carried her through the village, to the hospital, where Dillamond directed them into an examination room in the back of the building.

Fiyero gently kissed her forehead and smoothed her hair away from her face. "You'll be fine," he told her. He hesitated for a moment, unsure of whether he should say anything else to her.

"I love you," she whispered.

She was watching him with those huge, doe-like eyes of hers; and for a moment, he got the uncomfortable feeling that she knew what he was going to do. He shook that off quickly, however.

And yet he was right in thinking so, even though he did not know it. Because despite her own issues with telling him she loved him back, he never had trouble saying it back to her. Ever. Unless something really serious was going on and he was lying to her.

Her telling him she loved him was a test, one he did not recognise as such, and one he failed when he bent down to kiss the top of her head and squeezed her hand before leaving the room… without saying it back.

That was when she knew he was leaving.

* * *

**Dun dun duuuuun. Virtual birthday cake for all of you!**


	14. Chapter 14

**AN: Thank you all for the reviews and the birthday wishes! I had a great birthday :).**

**Fae'sFlower: FIYERO! *snatches my very own Fiyero from you and cuddles him to death* Thank you!**

**Emerald Minded Fictionist/Brittany: Heheh, you can use my name if you want to - you're certainly not the only one doing it on here ;).**

**Fabala Thropp: Not quite, but it would have been interesting :P.**

* * *

**Chapter 14.**

"Fiyero," Dr. Dillamond said when the prince came back into the hallway. He placed a hoof on the prince's shoulder. "Would you tell me what is going on? Her injuries look just fine – they are healing very well. She does not need to be here."

"She does," Fiyero argued, "but not for the reasons you think." He ran his fingers through his hair. "Doc, can you promise me something?"

Dillamond looked at him questioningly.

"Keep her here," Fiyero said softly. "No matter what happens or what you hear… keep her here. In that very room. Lock it when you leave. Keep an eye on her. It's for her own protection – the moment you let her out of your sight, she's going to do something stupid."

Dillamond eyed him up and down, arching his eyebrows. "For some reason, young man, I get the feeling that _you _are the one who is going to do something stupid."

"Not stupid," he said. "Risky, but not stupid. It's for her. I have to do it."

He sighed and nodded. "I'll keep her here, Fiyero. I promise."

Fiyero squeezed the Goat's shoulder. "Thank you."

Then he left.

Dawyn was waiting for him just outside and he smiled wearily at her. "Hey."

"Are you sure about this?" she asked him quietly.

He nodded. "Positive. We have to, Dawyn. You know as well as I do that if we don't do this, she will."

"I know." She looked up at him. "Are you ready?"

He nodded again and she gestured with her head for him to climb onto her back, which he did.

Mere clock-ticks later, they were gone.

At the same moment inside the hospital, Dillamond re-entered the room where he had left Elphaba, determined to keep his promise to Fiyero and make her stay put.

She was curled up on the bed when he came in and she looked up at him the moment she heard him enter. She looked so small, so vulnerable in that moment, that Dr. Dillamond was taken aback for a moment.

"He's gone, isn't he," she said, stating rather than asking. "He's off to save Glinda."

Dillamond hesitated, then, figuring he wouldn't be able to keep this from her for long anyway, he nodded reluctantly. "Yes. I think so. He's with Dawyn, though," he added quickly. "They'll be alright together."

Elphaba snorted softly.

"Let me take a look at your injuries," he said, which she let him do without protesting. She didn't make a sound as he unwrapped the bandage around her leg and inspected the splint, gently prodded her bruised ribs, bandaged everything up again, and poked and prodded at her from every other angle as well.

When he was finally done, he looked at her, realising she was very quiet. "Are you alright?" he asked gently.

She nodded listlessly. "Sure." She looked up at him briefly. "Um… could you maybe just… leave me alone?" she asked. "Just for a little while?"

He looked around the room. No windows. If he locked the door, there was no way she could escape – especially not in her current condition.

"Of course, Elphaba," he said, moving towards the door. "Call me if you need anything."

She nodded again. She heard him close the door and turn the key in the lock.

When he came back to check on her half an hour later, there was a giant hole in the wall, clearly caused by her magic; and Elphaba was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

"Miss Glinda? Hey, what are you doing? Get off her!"

The moment his weight lifted from her, Glinda wiped the blood from her face and looked up fearfully; but it was one of the 'nice' guards who had saved her. He was dragging his colleague out of her cell, yelling at him all the while.

He came back soon, kneeling down next to her. "Are you okay? Did he…" He swallowed. "Did he do anything?"

Glinda shook her head, slightly puzzled at the relief she saw flooding his eyes.

"No," she said hoarsely. "Not really. I mean, he tried to kiss me, so then I bit him…"

The guard actually chuckled at that. "Well, he deserved that."

"…and then he punched me in the face." She brought a hand up to her bruised cheekbone with a small frown. "But I'll be fine."

He gently squeezed her shoulder.

There were several guards that were being nice, or at least civil, to her; but she knew this one pretty well. He was one of the younger ones, probably only just graduated from the Gale Force Academy and put here in Southstairs for a few months or years before he could join the actual Gale Force in the field. She didn't know his name, but he was always kind, talking to her and trying his best to protect her from the guards that did want to harm her.

"Why are you here?" she whispered now, her blue eyes darting up to meet his.

His face fell and he sighed. "I'm sorry," he said. "Morrible wants to see you."

Her throat clenched shut. The only answer she could get out was a breathless, "Oh."

"She doesn't want me to take you to the room, though," he continued. 'The room' was Morrible's torture room, but neither of them really wanted to refer to it by that name. "She wants to see you outside."

Glinda blinked, then furrowed her brow, utterly confused. "Outside?" she echoed.

He nodded. "I don't know what's going on, but she says it's important. Come." He helped her to her feet and tied her wrists together before gently guiding her through the aisle between the cells, one hand on the small of her back to steady her.

She kept her head up high as she walked, the entire way out of the dungeons and into the sunlight, which was extremely bright to her eyes. She squinted, having to adjust after being down in the dark dungeons for over a week.

When her eyes focussed on what was in front of her, however, she gasped.

"E-Elphie?" she choked out.

Her friend's eyes flicked up to hers for a moment and she could see Elphaba quickly assessing if she was hurt. When she apparently decided that Glinda was not very badly injured, she raised her gaze to Morrible's again.

"Here she is," the old woman sneered. "Your precious Glinda. I held up my end of the bargain. Now you have to hold up yours."

"Not yet," Elphaba said. "I found a spell that is able to keep a person to his or her word, binding them with magic. I want your word that you will not go after or hurt Glinda. The same goes for Fiyero and Dawyn. I know they're bound to arrive here soon, but you're going to send them away without using any violence. You will not hurt any of them, Morrible. Are you willing to promise me that?"

Morrible cast her eyes heavenward. "Fine," she grumbled. "Cast the damned spell."

Elphaba did, and Morrible swore her oath. "I swear not to chase after or hurt either Miss Glinda, Prince Fiyero, or your little Jaguar friend. Anything else you want from me?"

Elphaba didn't say anything. She'd ask Morrible to release the Animals and stop chasing them as well, or something like that; but she knew the woman would never agree to that. There was only so much she could bargain for. She only hoped that Fiyero, Dawyn, and possibly Glinda would continue helping the Animals, thus maybe eventually changing things in Oz for the better.

She gave a small shake of her head and Morrible nodded. "Very well. Bring her forward!" she barked, and the guard holding Glinda led her to the middle of the courtyard.

"Let her go," Morrible said, and he did. "Alright, Miss Glinda. Start walking and keep walking. Same goes for you, Miss Elphaba."

As they did so, Glinda noticed her friend's horrible limp, the way her jaw was set and the pain she tried to hide in her eyes, and she knew that Elphaba was hurt. Her stomach was in knots and she felt as if she was choking. What in Oz was Elphaba doing?

When they passed one another, Elphaba briefly touched her hand and turned her head a little, giving her best friend a small smile. "It's okay, Glin. You're free now. Find Fiyero – he'll help you."

"Elphie…" Glinda whispered. "What about you?"

Elphaba shrugged one-shouldered, grimacing in pain at the motion. Glinda noticed that she was wearing one of her arms in a sling.

"It was a good bargain," the raven-haired witch said softly in reply to Glinda's question. "Your freedom, as well as your, Fiyero, and Dawyn's safety, in exchange for… well, me."

Glinda's eyes widened. "Elphie…"

"Keep walking!" Morrible snapped at them. Elphaba let go of Glinda's hand and kept on limping forward, and that was it.

The blonde looked back for a moment, horrified at what was happening. Her best friend had just sacrificed herself… for her. For Glinda. She closed her eyes, feeling tears welling inside of them. How could she just keep walking and leave her friend behind? How could she...

She was abandoning Elphie, she realised. She was betraying her best friend. Again. She had let her leave all by herself two years prior and now it was happening once more.

She suddenly whirled around, desperate to help her best friend, to not do this again; but much to her astonishment, she didn't see anyone there anymore. The guard was gone, as was Madame Morrible… as was Elphaba.

It was too late.

* * *

The guard that had brought Elphaba to her cell reached out to gently touch her arm. "You're hurt, aren't you?"

She flinched away from him, eyes burning. "Don't touch me."

He pulled his hand away, but he was still crouching beside her, and his eyes were still on her.

"That was a very brave thing," he said quietly. "What you did just now. Offering yourself in exchange for Glinda's freedom."

Elphaba closed her eyes tiredly, leaning her head back against the wall. "She's my best friend," she said. "I couldn't just leave her here. This was the only thing I could think of."

He nodded. "Well… I think it's admirable."

She opened her eyes and looked at him, tilting her head a little to the side. "Who are you?" she asked, a hint of curiosity in her voice. "You don't strike me as the typical Gale Force soldier."

He arched one eyebrow. "What would the typical Gale Force soldier be like, then, according to you?"

She shrugged, wincing when her previously dislocated shoulder protested. "You know, like all the others I've ever met in my life. Rude. Heartless. Cruel. Mean. Abusive. Arrogant. Evil…"

He held up both hands, a small grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. "I get the picture."

She smirked slightly at him.

He dropped his hands. "It wasn't always like that, though." He sighed. "My father was in the Gale Force, and his father before him… they used to be good people. The Gale Force used to consist of honourable men who defended Oz and all its inhabitants… all of them. Not just the human ones, or the rich ones. Every single Ozian. Animals were considered equal to humans. It was a good time back then… I've been told many stories about it, even though by the time I was old enough to know about these things, the Wizard was already here and the Animals were already starting to get shunned." He got a faraway look in his eyes for a moment, then shook his head. "It was better, back then, and I guess I hoped… that by joining the Gale Force… I could bring some of that time back, you know? I could maybe… help change things, or something."

Elphaba smiled wistfully. "I guess you're not _all_ bad, then."

He smiled back. "Some of us are." His face became serious again. "Glinda came awfully close to finding that out."

Elphaba breathed in with a sharp hiss. "Did they…"

"No." The guard shook his head. "There are enough of us 'good guys' here to prevent that," he said, a ghost of a smile flitting across his face for a moment before he became serious again. "But that doesn't mean they didn't try."

Elphaba nodded, looking down. "They'll try to do it to me, too. Unless the green scares them off, but given the sadistic nature most of them possess, I highly doubt that."

The guard did not deny that.

She raised her gaze. "But those 'good guys' of yours won't protect _me_, would they?" She already knew the answer to that, of course.

He hesitated.

She smiled wryly. "That was a rhetorical question. I know they won't. They protected her because she was Glinda the Good and all of Oz loved her. They didn't want to see her hurt. I, on the other hand, am the Wicked Witch of the West. They're _trained _to hurt me. And they'll do it in every possible way."

He looked at her. "If you knew that," he began, "then why –"

"I had no choice." She closed her eyes again. "Like I said, I couldn't just leave her here. It was my fault she ended up here and I would never have been able to forgive myself if I hadn't done anything to save her."

They lapsed into silence. She was leaning her back against the wall, head slightly tilted back, eyes closed; he was still crouched beside her, lost in thought.

"I will," he spoke up suddenly.

She opened her eyes to look at him questioningly.

"Protect you," he clarified. "From them. If I can."

She gave him a weak, but genuine smile. She didn't think he would be able to. He wouldn't be on duty all the time, for one; and even if he were, he was only alone against who knew how many others. Guards who would want to have their way with her. Who wanted to hurt her, or take her…

The mere thought made her shudder, but she'd known this could happen. Despite what Fiyero and Dawyn had seemed to think, she had thought this through. She hadn't thought about it for very _long_, but she _had _thought about it, and she had decided that it was worth it. If Glinda, Fiyero, and Dawyn would be safe, it was worth it.

Images of Fiyero and Dawyn flashed in her mind, but she pushed them away. She did not want to think about them right now.

The guard rose to his full height, clearing his throat. "I guess I'll just… go now. I have duties, you know, things like that…"

"Of course."

He turned and made to leave the cell. Just as he started to close the door behind him, she called out to him.

"What's your name?"

He seemed startled by the question at first, but then he replied, "Cohvu."

She nodded. "Well… thank you, Cohvu."

He seemed to soften and he nodded again. "You're welcome."

Then he left her in her prison cell, alone and weak in the dark.

* * *

**I thought that was a great way to start off this new year for me :D. Cliffies and torture and death, oh my! (Yes, there will be more death. Just not yet.)**

**And yes, I brought Cohvu back. I like him.**


	15. Chapter 15

**AN: I know - everyone should just think and stop doing stupid things... but if they did that, there wouldn't be a story, now would there?**

**Vinkunwildflowerqueen: Hihi, that's a pretty great compliment for me. I actually made the great and almighty Queen of Vinkun Wildflowers gasp!**

**Elphaba'sGirl: Yeah... it kind of is going to be MtbB all over again. Possibly worse :3.**

**Fabala Thropp: Where there is Cohvu, there shall be Colinda.**

* * *

**Chapter 15.**

"We're almost there." Dawyn peeked out from between the leaves of the bush she was hiding behind. "There's the City."

"Good," Fiyero said. "With a little bit of luck, we could be back by nightfall."

She glanced at him over her shoulder. "You do realise Elphaba is going to skin us alive, right? Your head will be on her living room wall and I will probably end up as a rug in front of her fireplace."

Fiyero chuckled. "I realise that. But if we bring back Glinda, she might decide to keep us around a little bit longer." He grimaced. "I feel bad for Dillamond, though. I bet he's having the hardest time keeping her down."

"But she doesn't know where we went," Dawyn countered. "Does she?"

Fiyero shook his head. "I don't think she does. But even if she didn't figure it out, the fact that Dillamond is keeping her at the clinic and locking her in a room must be grating on her nerves."

"We'll get back as soon as possible." Dawyn peered at the palace again. "The sooner we get going, the sooner she'll see us again."

They started moving again, but they had barely walked ten steps before someone came running towards them, so fast that they didn't even have the time to assess who it was before he or she bumped into them.

Fiyero grabbed the person's shoulders, starting to ask if she – because it was a she – was alright, when he saw the woman's face and his eyes nearly bulged out of his head. "_Glinda_?!"

"Fiyero?" She stifled a sob, staring at him wide-eyed. Then she burst into tears and threw her arms around him, sobbing into his shoulder. "Oh my Oz, Fiyero!"

He held her, utterly confused as to what was going on. "Glinda, what's going on? How did you get away?"

She didn't reply, just kept on crying.

Dawyn pushed her nose against Glinda's waist. "Glinda?"

The blonde looked up, sniffling. When she saw the huge Jaguar, she shrieked and leapt away from Fiyero, trembling in fear. "Oh my _Oz_!"

"Shh, Glin, it's okay," Fiyero tried to reassure her. "She's an Animal, not an animal. She won't hurt you. She's a friend."

Glinda stared at the Jaguar. "Are you… are you Dawyn?" she asked eventually.

Fiyero and the Animal exchanged a look.

"Yes," Dawyn said. "I am."

Glinda nodded slowly. "Elphie mentioned you." Then her eyes suddenly filled with tears again. "Oh, Elphie…"

That alarmed Fiyero even more and he grabbed Glinda's shoulders again, shaking her gently. "Glin, what's going on? How did you get away?"

"I-It was Elphie," she sobbed, burying her face in her hands and shaking her head. "I… I was taken from my cell and brought outside, and Morrible… she was standing there…" She hiccupped. "And Elphie was there, Fiyero. She was there. She made Morrible magically give her word to not hurt either of you two, or me… and then Morrible let me go and took Elphie instead." The tears were streaming down her face. "They have her, Fiyero, they have her… she sacrificed her own freedom for mine, she… she's in Southstairs…"

Fiyero could hear Dawyn suck in her breath with a sharp hiss, but it was distant and muffled, as if he was under water. The world suddenly seemed to be spinning around him.

She'd known. Suddenly he could see that clear as day. When he had come to say goodbye to her in that room in the hospital, she'd known somehow what he was up to. She must have found a way to escape Dr. Dillamond. She had probably made and enchanted a new broom, which would explain how she had managed to get to the Emerald City before he and Dawyn had.

And now they had her.

"Fiyero!" Dawyn pushed his hip rather roughly. "Breathe, you idiot. You fainting is not going to help Elphaba in any way."

Glinda was eyeing him worriedly as well, her tears still on her cheeks. "Fiyero?"

He managed to snap out of it somehow, shaking his head. "We have to save her."

"We do," Dawyn agreed, "but we're going to need a plan first."

Fiyero looked at her as if she had gone crazy. "A plan?"

"They probably put her in a heavily secured prison cell," Dawyn said. "Morrible knows how powerful her magic is. I don't think this is going to be as easy as rescuing Glinda would have been, Fiyero."

Glinda huffed. "You think rescuing _me_ would have been easy? There are three bolt locks on the door to Southstairs on both the inside and the outside. Over sixty Gale Force soldiers patrol the hallways and the surrounding streets at any given moment of the day. It would have been insane to rescue _me _out of one of their regular cells, but now…"

"What else do you know about Southstairs, Glinda?" Dawyn prodded gently.

"The cell Morrible probably put Elphie in is one the Wizard himself designed years ago," Glinda said. "It's one of five cells he built for extremely dangerous criminals. All stone walls, thick iron bars, and unbreakable locks – not to mention the spells Morrible cast on them. I don't even know what they do, but I have no doubt that they would make escape even harder." She shook her head. "I hate to say this, Fiyero," she said softly, "but you're not going to be able to get her out of there."

He clenched his jaw. "I will," he swore. "Somehow, I will."

Dawyn looked at him. "We need the other Animals," she said. "Felines, Bears, Wolves – every type of Animal with some kind of strength has to help. If we collect a group of them, we could stand a chance."

"Smaller Animals could possibly help, too," Glinda thought out loud. "Small birds could maybe fly in and bring Elphaba things that could help her from the inside, or they could pick locks…"

"They would," Dawyn said. "All of them would help if we asked them to. So many of them owe Elphaba their lives."

Fiyero was biting his lip until he tasted blood, burying his hands deep in the pockets of his trousers. "But…" He nearly choked on his own words. "It will take too long."

Glinda placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "She can take care of herself, Fiyero," she said. "At least for a little while. It will only be a few days. I've been in there for nine days and I'm still alive, aren't I?"

"_You_," Fiyero spat, "are not the most wanted criminal in Oz. _You_ are not the person Morrible wants to see broken or _dead _more than anything else in the world. _You _did not fall ten metres to the ground from a broomstick, only to end up with a concussion and a bunch of broken and bruised and dislocated bones!"

Glinda paled. "So she _is _hurt…"

"Fiyero," Dawyn said sternly. "Calm down. She's been healing well this past week – Dillamond said so. If need be, she can protect herself, as long as we don't leave her in there for too long. And we won't, I promise."

Glinda still looked shocked. "Ten metres…"

"It wasn't ten," Dawyn said. Fiyero glared at her and she shrugged. "More like… eight?"

Glinda was shaking a little and Fiyero suddenly felt guilty for snapping at her. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head. "It's okay."

He put his arms around her in a hug, squeezing his eyes shut. "Don't get me wrong – I'm really glad you're alive, and okay… are you okay?"

She sniffled, but nodded. "Yeah," she said. "I mean, they… they tried to do… things…" She shuddered a little. "But most of the guards protected me from their colleagues. Morrible... she whipped me a few times and when I kept telling her I didn't know where Elphie was…" She held up her injured hand. "She pinned my hand to the wall with a knife."

Fiyero suddenly felt sick to his stomach.

"It's okay, though," Glinda hastened to reassure him. "I'm okay."

"You should get that checked out," Dawyn muttered, sniffing the bandage around Glinda's hand. "Dillamond could probably take a look at it if you come back to the Animal hideout with us."

Fiyero could only stare ahead of him without seeing anything, a thousand thoughts running through his mind. If Morrible had done _this _to Glinda… he didn't even want to think about what she might do to Elphaba.

"Hey. Fiyero?" Dawyn pressed her nose against his hand and looked up at him.

"I know you're worried," she said. "I am, too. But I need you to focus on the here and now, okay? We're going to help Elphaba, I promise, but I'm going to need your help and you're not of use to anyone if you stand here thinking about everything that might or might not happen to her while she is in there."

Fiyero took a deep breath, then slowly let it out again.

Then he nodded. "You're right."

Dawyn licked the back of his hand reassuringly and turned. "Get on," she said over her shoulder. "I'll take us back to the hideout in no time, and then we can start making plans."

Without hesitating even a clock-tick, both Fiyero and Glinda climbed onto the Jaguar's back and they raced off.

* * *

"And, Miss Elphaba?" the Wizard said smugly. "How are you feeling?"

At some point during the whipping, her hair had gotten loose from her braid and it was now hanging in front of her face in tangled, bloody tresses. She was on her knees, her hands tied behind her back and the skin on her back slashed open by the guard's whip; but when she shook her hair back to give the Wizard a death glare, he realised that she wasn't even close to broken yet.

In answer to his question, she snorted and spat a mouthful of blood into his face.

He flushed a bright purple, grasping his handkerchief and using it to clean off his face. He made a gesture and the guard grabbed the young witch by the throat, pinning her against the wall with her feet dangling just a few centimetres above the ground.

"I will not be treated this way in my own palace," the Wizard growled. "You are my prisoner, Elphaba, and it's about time you start acting like one."

She was struggling weakly and the only sounds she could produce were choked little noises; but when the guard dropped he and she fell in a heap on the floor, she caught her breath and looked back up at the Wizard.

"What?" she croaked, a defiant glimmer in her eyes. "You want me to scream and cry and beg you for mercy? Never."

He slapped her across the face, which almost made her laugh. He'd spent the past hours whipping and choking her. Did he really think she would be impressed by a slap in the face?

"Would you rather be killed?" he demanded, his eyes two small, dark slits. "Is that it? Because if that's what you want, then I can have you burnt or shot or dangling at the gallows within less than an hour, my dear."

She snarled at him. "I am not 'your' anything."

He laughed hollowly. "You're my prisoner," he corrected her.

Much to her dismay, she found that she could hardly argue with that.

"So why don't you be a nice little witch and cooperate?" the Wizard suggested.

"With what?" she spat. "You whipping me?"

The Wizard cocked his head slightly. "You could start off by telling me where our two traitors are," he said. "Miss Glinda and Prince Fiyero. You see, it would not do to leave them running around like this, perhaps spreading lies and stories throughout all of Oz. Treachery is punishable by death and we need to show the other people of Oz that we are not to be mocked. We will find them and their sentence will be carried out, as an example to every other Ozian who even remotely considers betraying us."

Elphaba's eyes had grown wide and she spluttered, "Morrible promised they'd be safe!"

"Promises can be broken," the Wizard dismissed her.

"Not this one." She shook her head violently. "Morrible swore an oath under a spell I cast on her," she said, absolutely certain that she had at least done _that _right. She'd studied the spell before and she knew everything about it. Morrible had sworn an oath and the moment she'd try to break it, the magic would stop her. That was how the spell worked. She had taken it from the Grimmerie – it was irreversible and absolutely unbreakable. "She can't break it. It was part of our deal."

The Wizard, however, merely looked amused.

"What exactly did Madame Morrible swear, Elphaba?" he asked her, his eyes gleaming as he waited for her to figure it out.

She paused. "She swore she wouldn't go after them," she said. "She swore that she would not ever chase or hurt either Glinda, Dawyn, or Fiyero."

The Wizard nodded, chuckling with unholy glee. "Yes," he agreed, boring his eyes into hers, wanting to see her face when she'd realise her mistake. "She promised that. And she will keep that promise."

Elphaba stared back at him, knowing there was more and trying to ignore the growing feeling of dread slowly settling in her stomach.

"Because _she _is not going after them," the Wizard said, grinning widely now, "and _she _is not going to hurt them. Our Gale Force soldiers will do that for us." He rose to his feet just as he saw the horror in Elphaba's eyes, and his grin widened even further.

"Take her back to her cell," he ordered the guards standing by the door. He walked away, completely ignoring the screams and curses that came from the interrogation room.

* * *

**I would like to take this opportunity to recommend a story: _Not All Angels Have Wings_ by Luna the Zekrom. It's her first Wicked story and it only has one chapter so far, but it's really good! Go and check it out! :)**


	16. Chapter 16

**AN: Kudos to PerlogAnnwyl for picking up on the small father-daughter hint thingy in the previous chapter :). (The "I'm not your anything!" part.)**

**Elphaba'sGirl: Oh, come on, you know I always write happy endings! ...For multichaps, anyway. And then only for the characters that survive, of course. *cackles***

**Virtual pie for my Guest reviewer for being the 200th reviewer on this story! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 16.**

"Hey."

She did not look up or even move. Cohvu hesitated for a moment, contemplating just leaving – maybe she wanted to be alone; but then he heard a muffled sob and he cautiously approached the cot. "Elphaba?"

Silence for a moment. Then, "Go away."

"Elph-"

"Leave me alone, Cohvu."

"But I want to help you." He put the tray down on the floor and came even closer. "Are you hurt?"

He realised how stupid that question was the moment it left his mouth. He could clearly see her sliced-open back from across the room – of course she was hurt. Everyone who was ever taken to Morrible and the Wizard's interrogation room came back hurt.

"Will you tell me what's wrong?"

She gave a terse shake of her head.

He raked his fingers through his hair. "Well, I, um… I brought you some food," he said quietly. "I'll go and get you some medical supplies, too, for your back, if you want…"

She heaved a deep sigh. "I'm fine, okay?" It didn't sound very convincing. "Just go."

"Is there really nothing I can do for you?" he asked and she hesitated, wondering if maybe, just maybe, there was.

"Could you…" She faltered. Could she ask this of him? Could she trust him to do this for her, or would he betray her?

She wasn't one to give other people her trust so easily… but did she really have a choice here?

"Could you find Fiyero?" she whispered. "And Glinda… you have to warn them. Morrible is coming after them."

Cohvu hesitated.

"I would," he said finally. "But I have no idea where they are."

Elphaba bit her lip. "Never mind. It was a stupid idea, anyway." She let out a wry laugh. "For all I know, you'd bring along your Gale Force buddies and murder them on the spot."

She was a bit taken aback by the genuine flash of hurt that crossed his face. "You really think I would do that?"

"You _are _a Gale Force soldier," she shot back. "You may be nice, but you're still bound to the Wizard. How do I know you won't betray me?"

He thought about that for a moment.

Then his face lit up. "Use the spell."

She stared at him, confused, and he explained, "The spell you used on Morrible. Make me swear that I won't hurt them."

She scoffed. "I told you what the Wizard said the other day, Cohvu. I left loopholes. Big ones. It's not a guarantee."

"Then make sure there are no loopholes," he said simply. "I do want to help you, Elphaba. You're right – Morrible and the Wizard are going after Fiyero and Glinda now and you have to warn them somehow or they might be unpleasantly surprised."

Elphaba was still looking at him, clearly conflicted, but then she nodded. "Okay," she whispered. She couldn't believe she was doing this; but she knew that if she did nothing, Fiyero and Glinda would be killed for sure. Sooner or later, she knew, they were going to come here in an attempt to free her from Southstairs, and then the Gale Force would pounce on them right away.

She also knew that if Cohvu did betray her now, she would never forgive herself; but this was a risk she had to take.

She took a deep breath and cast the spell. She made Cohvu swear to keep all the information she was about to give him about the location of the Animal hideout to himself. He swore he would not harm or kill – since she wasn't sure if 'killing' was the same as 'harming' – any Animal, nor Fiyero or Glinda, ever and in any way. He swore he would go alone and he swore he would travel there, find Fiyero and Glinda and pass on Elphaba's message, and come right back. He also swore he would not go back there after he had returned and that he would never tell anyone about any of this.

She went over it in her head a million times, but she didn't think there were any loopholes left for him to use.

"That's it," she said. "Okay. You'll need to go down the Yellow Brick Road first." She explained to him how to get to the Animal hideout as quickly as possible and he nodded, storing it all away in his memory.

"And what do you want me to tell them?" he asked.

She hesitated.

"Tell them that the Wizard and Morrible are after them," she said finally, "and that they want them dead. Tell them that if they even _think _of coming here in an attempt to rescue me, I'm going to change them both into rocks – and Dawyn, too. Tell them I'll find a way out myself."

That was a lie. She knew she wouldn't be able to escape from here – she was still too weak after her fall and then the whipping, and the spells Morrible had woven around her prison cell were ones that Elphaba could not break… not without the Grimmerie, anyway.

She might be able to find a way around them, eventually, somehow. She might be able to pick the locks or magic-spell them open one way or another. She also might be able to find a way out of Southstairs despite the triply-bolted, thick doors.

But to succeed in all those things, and that without any of the patrolling guards noticing? Highly unlikely. More like 'impossible'.

If Fiyero knew that, though, he'd throw her cautions into the wind and come here regardless of the danger he'd be putting himself in. She wanted to prevent that, no matter the cost, and so she'd just have to lie to him.

"Tell them I'll be fine," she said to Cohvu.

He nodded and reached out to squeezed her arm. "I will go."

"Thank you," she whispered. "Good luck."

* * *

"Gale Force!" Day, the little Lamb, and Lown, the Wolf pup who had lost a front paw, came storming towards the small group of people and Animals in the centre of the square as quickly as their short legs could carry them. "There's a Gale Force soldier heading our way!"

The Animals immediately scattered, panicked, but Glinda calmed them down.

She looked at the young Animals. "Just one?"

Day nodded. "He's all alone, Miss Glinda," he said. "I think he came from the direction of the Emerald City."

"If he really is alone, we could take him." Glinda turned to look at Dawyn and Fiyero. "If he's not, however…"

"It could be a trap," Dawyn agreed. "I'm going to check it out." Before anyone could stop her, she had leapt off.

Fiyero sighed. "Oz, I hope she won't do anything stupid."

"She'll be fine." Glinda peered at the Jaguar's disappearing form, then conjured up her bubble. "But I'm going after her to keep her from getting into trouble… just in case."

She flew off, staying low, and Fiyero ran after her. By the time they reached the edge of the village, Dawyn had already gripped the Gale Force soldier's uniform with her teeth, shaking him.

He was shouting for her to stop. "Please! I'm not here to hurt you!" he yelled, struggling weakly. "Elphaba sent me!"

Glinda and Fiyero froze, surprised. Dawyn kept a firm grip on his clothes.

"Wait," Glinda said. "What?"

Fiyero stared at the soldier. "What in Oz are you talking about?"

Glinda peered closer at him and then exclaimed incredulously, "You!"

"Yes, it's me." The soldier tried to wriggle out of Dawyn's grip. "Can you please let me go now?"

"Do you know this guy?" Fiyero asked Glinda, who nodded.

"Yes," she said. "He was one of my guards when I was in Southstairs. A nice one, actually." She smiled at Cohvu and motioned for Dawyn to let him go.

The Jaguar let him plop down onto the forest floor and he rubbed his neck and straightened his clothes, a pained look on his face. "That was not the welcome I had hoped to get."

"Be glad I sunk my teeth into your jacket and not your neck," Dawyn growled and Cohvu wisely shut up.

Glinda tugged at his arm. "Did you say Elphie sent you?"

He nodded and looked from her to Fiyero and then at Dawyn. "I'm Cohvu," he introduced himself. "As Glinda said, I work in Southstairs. Elphaba sent me to warn you."

"Warn us?" Glinda echoed, a trace of worry in her eyes. "About what?"

"Is she alright?" Fiyero asked urgently.

Cohvu hesitated, remembering the awful wounds on Elphaba's back from the whiplashes.

"She'll live," he said eventually.

Fiyero did not find that reassuring at all.

"She's worried about you guys, though," Cohvu continued. "Morrible and the Wizard want you dead."

Glinda looked confused. "But she made Morrible swear –"

"Morrible and the Wizard found a loophole," Cohvu said. "They're coming after you both, to punish you for betraying them and to make an example out of you two, to prevent the rest of Oz from getting any ideas. Elphaba sent me to make sure you're safe, that you know what's going on and you won't put yourselves at risk. She wants me to make sure that you won't go to the Emerald City in an attempt to free her, because she knows you'd be killed in an instant."

"If we don't free her, _she _is going to get killed," Fiyero immediately argued.

Cohvu shook his head. "I'm only telling you what she wanted me to tell you," he said. "I think she said something about changing you all into rocks if you came to try and rescue her."

"That sounds like her," Dawyn muttered. She was still looking at Cohvu suspiciously.

Glinda bit her lip. "What are we going to do?"

"The Animals are ready." Fiyero crossed his arms and set his jaw. "We have a lot of them willing to help us. We're going to the Emerald Palace."

Glinda started to protest. "Elphie –"

"_Elphie_," Fiyero interrupted her, "is currently in Southstairs for Morrible to do with her as she wishes. She's going to get killed if we don't do anything, Glin."

"Maybe she'll be okay!"

Fiyero threw her a sceptical look, then turned to Cohvu.

"You," he said. "If you can look me in the eye and honestly tell me that she has not been hurt in any way and that you think she is going to be alright… then I'll listen to your – her – warnings and stay put. But only if you can do that."

He stared at the Gale Force soldier intently.

Cohvu lowered his gaze and didn't say anything.

Fiyero nodded, trying to appear calm and unfazed. "That's what I thought." Inwardly, though, his heart was pounding and he actually felt sick. The fact that this Cohvu hadn't even _tried _to tell him Elphaba was alright worried him more than he could possibly say. How badly hurt was she, exactly?

"We're doing this," Dawyn said, moving to stand beside Fiyero and nuzzling the back of his hand to show him he had her support. "We're going to free her, no matter what it takes."

Glinda nodded, finally convinced. "I'll go and tell the Animals." She left, leaving Fiyero and Dawyn alone with the Gale Force soldier.

"Cohvu?"

Cohvu looked up at the Vinkun prince before him. Fiyero swallowed, but looked right back, his gaze determined. He wasn't sure if he was going to like the answer, but he had to ask.

"How bad is it?"

Cohvu hesitated.

"Not _very _bad," he said finally, "but not good, either. Mostly whiplashes."

Fiyero closed his eyes for a moment. Dawyn pushed her head against his hip in a sign of support.

"I left medical supplies with her before I left," Cohvu said. "She will be alright… for now. But I think you're doing the right thing by trying to free her, rather than listen to her and leave her there."

Fiyero nodded. He thought so, too. "Will you help us?"

Cohvu looked surprised at that and Dawyn frowned at him, but he kept his gaze on the guard in front of him.

Cohvu nodded. "Yes," he said. "Of course."

Fiyero nodded brusquely. "Alright." He turned on his heels. "Come on," he said. "Let's go make plans. The sooner we get her out of there, the better."


	17. Chapter 17

**AN: Thank you all for reviewing! :)**

**Emerald Minded Fictionist: Believe me - I've been there. I still go there, sometimes. Fiyeraba fluff helps... a little.**

**Fae'sFlower: ...I'm not saying anything.**

* * *

**Chapter 17.**

Much to her surprise, Elphaba was left alone by both Morrible and the Wizard for a while. She found it rather suspicious, even though, of course, she wasn't complaining. It gave her some rest and that, along with the medical supplies Cohvu had brought her before he left, helped her heal a bit.

It didn't nearly go fast enough for her liking, though. Her whiplashes weren't even what bothered her most – sure, they hurt pretty badly, but not to the extent that she could not move because of it. It were mostly the injuries from her fall just over two weeks prior that still bothered her. She could hardly stand on her broken leg and with her collarbone and shoulder far from healed, she found herself impaired in practically everything she did. How could she possibly even _try _to make a plan to escape if she couldn't even walk properly, or use both of her hands? It was hopeless.

And so she lay low, resting as much as possible – since she didn't have anything else to do now, anyway – and trying to come up with a plan in the meantime.

* * *

"Where are they?" Morrible hissed furiously, pacing up and down before the Wizard's throne.

The Wizard himself was stretched out on the richly decorated chair, sipping the liquid from his green bottle and watching his Press Secretary pace.

"Relax, Madame," he said casually. "We'll find them eventually. They're two of the most famous people in Oz – how hard can it be?"

"We failed to locate the only _green person _in Oz for nearly two and a half whole years," Morrible growled. "If Prince Fiyero and Miss Glinda really wanted to disappear, they'd be able to."

"They're not as adept at hiding as Elphaba was." The Wizard took another gulp from his green bottle, then put it away and switched to a bottle of whiskey. "And even if we don't find them, what does it matter? We have the Wicked Witch of the West in our dungeons!"

"It's not enough." Morrible stared out of the window for a few moments. "We need them, too. I want them all standing next to one another, all three of them, displayed for all of Oz to see. We will set an example for every traitor out there. They'll be hanged. Glinda will go first." Her eyes were gleaming as she laid out her fantasy before the Wizard. Oh, how long she had waited for this moment! "All of Oz will watch their Glinda the Good squirm before them, dying with a noose around her neck, and everyone will know what will happen if they betray us."

She cackled. "And Prince Fiyero will go next," she said smugly, "purely because I cannot _wait _to see the look on Elphaba's face when we take everything she loves away from her. Maybe I'll hurt him first, too. Make it even better to watch, more painful for her… she's not broken yet, Your Ozness. She's stubborn and she's strong. But if we kill Glinda and Fiyero right in front of her, then I just know that we will _finally _get to see her broken, and that will be the ultimate triumph… right before she is executed herself."

She threw her head back and cackled again.

The Wizard, however, was frowning. "That sounds great, Madame," he said a bit irritably, "but we don't _have _Glinda and Fiyero, and I don't think we should wait all too long before executing Elphaba. She's still a witch. She's weak now, but once she gains more strength, she might just find a way to escape. Glinda and Fiyero won't leave it at this, either – I'm sure of that. If she slips through our fingers…"

"She won't," Morrible said confidently. "I'll make sure she stays too weak to escape, and if Fiyero and Glinda do come to rescue her… well, it will just save us the hassle of setting out to find _them_, won't it?" She was grinning now. "Don't worry, Your Ozness. We'll make this work."

He took another swing from his whiskey bottle and pointed it at the window. "Looks like we won't have to wait long, either."

Morrible whirled around and an evil smirk made its way onto her face when she saw Fiyero below, making his way over to the entrance of the Palace.

"Perfect," she whispered.

* * *

"Have you got the Grimmerie?" Dawyn asked Glinda quietly.

The blonde nodded and showed her the book. "I only found one spell that I think could break the magical locks on Elphie's cell – I wrote that one down," she said, showing Dawyn a piece of parchment as well. "There might be more in here that can help us, though, but I'm not sure… I can't read most of it. We might have to improvise."

"Great." Dawyn looked back at Fiyero, who was making his way over to the doors of the Palace. "Oz, I hope he won't do anything stupid."

Glinda snorted. "I wouldn't count on it."

She handed the piece of paper to Niyé, the little Sparrow fluttering in the air next to them. "Go," she said. "Good luck."

He flew off, followed by his family. They stayed a little apart in an attempt to not stand out so much as they flew around the Palace and down to the small windows just above the floor, which led to the staircase that would lead them into the tower of Southstairs.

Dawyn looked over her shoulder. The Darner family was there. There were Felines, Bears, Oxen, Horses, and Wolves. There were smaller Animals, some of which were inconspicuously following the Birds into the building, helping to set the plan in motion.

"I'm here!" Fiyero was yelling, waving his arms. "Come and get me if you can!"

"Guards!" a voice boomed and moments later, Gale Force soldiers started streaming out of the building. Fiyero turned around and ran, disappearing between the buildings of the City. If everything went the way it was supposed to, a Horse was waiting there to pick the prince up and get him away from the murderous soldiers and back to safety. The most important thing was that the soldiers were now out to get Fiyero, which meant less of them would be in Southstairs to guard Elphaba.

Dawyn just hoped desperately that this would work.

* * *

"Elphaba?" Niyé whispered, fluttering around and looking into every cell he saw, but Southstairs was so _huge_. "Elphaba? Are you in here?"

"Niyé?"

He turned, searching for her. Eventually he found her in a cell far off in the corner and he flew over to her, landing on the floor just outside of her cell. She was pale and her hair hung in limp tangles down her shoulders, but she seemed relatively alright.

"What are you doing here?" she whispered sharply. "Don't you know how dangerous it is for you to be here?"

"We're rescuing you," the little Sparrow told her. He looked around and his sister hopped forward, holding Glinda's paper in her beak. "Don't worry, we have a plan."

Elphaba's eyes were wide. "I told Fiyero and Glinda to stay put!" she hissed. "Didn't they get my message?"

"They did," Niyé's mother, who joined them, said. "But we all agreed that we were not going to leave you in here."

Elphaba groaned and rested her forehead against the bars.

Niyé's sister hopped further forward.

"Here," said Niyé. "Cast this spell."

Elphaba knelt down to take the paper from the tiny Bird and read it quickly, then spoke the words aloud. The cell around her shimmered a little bit before going back to normal.

Suddenly, running footsteps were heard and the Sparrows scattered, hiding in cells nearby. The guard that ran around the corner, though, was not out to hurt any of them.

"Elphaba." Cohvu fumbled with his keys, but eventually found the right one and opened the cell door. "Did you cast the spell? Otherwise you can't leave this cell – you'll get magically shocked and thrown back in."

"I know," she said through gritted teeth. "I tried that on my first day here."

He grinned sheepishly. "Right. So did you? Cast the spell?"

She nodded and he swung open the door and held out his hand. "Great. Come on."

"This way!" Niyé said, flying ahead of them. Elphaba bit back the pain that shot through her body and followed the Sparrows, Cohvu running behind her with his rifle at the ready, looking for anyone that might come after them.

* * *

Fiyero skidded to a halt, cursing when he saw the three Gale Force soldiers restraining the Horse that was supposed to get him to safety. He was caught in a net and it was clear that his struggling had not done him any good.

"Tough luck, Your Highness," one of the soldiers said with a smug grin. The others just laughed.

"Go!" the Horse shouted at Fiyero. "Get out of here!"

Fiyero, however, gritted his teeth and stayed put.

"Come and get me, if you dare," he challenged.

The soldiers exchanged a glance. Two stepped forward with their rifles.

"Now!" Fiyero yelled, and Dawyn, as well as the Darner family, jumped down from the rooftops, knocking over the soldiers. The cubs immediately started working on the net the Horse was trapped in, whilst their parents bared their teeth and growled at the three helpless men lying on the floor. Dawyn snapped their rifles in two by stepping on them.

The moment the Horse was free, Fiyero jumped on its back and they raced off together. A glance over his shoulder told him that Glinda was hovering around in her bubble, waving sweetly and taunting the Gale Force as well as the Wizard and Madame Morrible, who had appeared on one of the balconies. The blonde actually started to sing now and Fiyero couldn't suppress a grin. Leave it to Glinda to make her own personal show out of a distraction technique.

The Horse ran around the block, taking a detour back to the tower of Southstairs so they would not be spotted by the guards. He dismounted and thanked the Horse, who waited some distance away. Fiyero crouched beside one of the low barred windows. A few smaller Animals – two Rabbits, a Monkey, and a Fox – were busy working the steel bars with hacksaws, trying to free the way for Elphaba to escape through.

Fiyero stayed there and waited, praying to every deity he knew that Elphaba would make it through this whole ordeal safely.

* * *

"This way." Niyé flew ahead of Elphaba and Cohvu, leading the way over to a door in the back, which Cohvu opened with his key. Past the door there was a long, spiralling staircase leading down. The Sparrows fluttered through the door and down the stairs, closely followed by Elphaba and Cohvu.

When Cohvu saw the young witch stumbling, he quickly grabbed her arm to keep her from losing her balance and toppling all the way down. "Are you alright?"

She nodded, grimacing slightly. "Fine."

Cohvu gave her a look, at which she grumbled, but gave in.

"It's not fully healed yet," she said reluctantly as an explanation. "My leg. But I'll live."

Cohvu looked back over his shoulder once, at the now-closed door at the top of the stairs, and decided that he could take the risk of putting his rifle away. He hung the weapon across his back and scooped Elphaba up in his arms instead, carrying her the rest of the way down the stairs.

"There!" Niyé's sister chirped and Elphaba and Cohvu both looked up. In front of them, one of the barred windows had been opened, the bars severed to clear the way.

The Sparrows flew out of the window and Cohvu put Elphaba down on her feet.

"It's a bit tricky," he said, "but the window is up high – you've got to climb onto my shoulders."

"What about you?" she asked, frowning slightly.

He waved her away. "I can take the normal way out," he said. "Pretend I was on my colleagues' side all along. I'll be fine, Elphaba, don't worry about me." He cupped his hands in order to be able to help her get up. "Now go."

She put her foot into the bowl his hands made together and she slowly climbed to stand on his shoulders, swinging one leg through the window. She glanced down at Cohvu.

"Thank you."

He smiled. "You're welcome."

Then she climbed all the way through, staying on the floor for a few moments to catch her breath before opening her eyes. She raised her gaze, only to find Fiyero standing there.

She gave him a weak half-smile. "Hi," she croaked.

He fell down onto his knees and pulled her into his arms, kissing her deeply and so long that when they finally broke apart, she was completely breathless.

"Thank Oz you're okay," he breathed, holding her close and burying his face in her hair. "Oz, Elphaba, I was so worried about you… did you completely lose your mind?" he demanded, pulling back slightly to look into her eyes. He pushed a strand of hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear, and she could see that his hand was shaking a little. "What in Oz were you thinking?"

"I had to save Glinda," she said, lowering her eyes.

He shook his head and pulled her back to him, cradling her in his arms. He could see the awful wounds the whiplashes had left on her back and his heart ached for her, but at least she was out of there. She was going to be alright and safe now – he would rather give his own life than let her end up in those dungeons again.

"Come on," he said, helping her to her feet, but not letting go of her. "We've got to get out of here."

He lifted her onto the Horse's back and then climbed on himself, after which the Animal took off. They had barely covered twenty metres, however, when suddenly there was a lot of shouting, followed by gunshots. Fiyero felt Elphaba stiffen in front of him and he urged the Horse to stop, listening intently.

Then Glinda came flying towards them in her bubble, clearly panicked.

"Elphie, I need help!" she shouted. "The Animals are retreating into the forest, but Morrible has enchanted them so that they can't move and the Gale Force is getting closer! They'll all be killed!"

Elphaba thought quickly. "The Grimmerie!"

Glinda landed so that she could hand her friend the thick magical book. Elphaba flipped through the pages, her lips forming words Fiyero could not understand, until she found a spell she was looking for. More unintelligible words spilt out of her mouth and she spurred on the Horse. "To the forest!"

"Fae –" Fiyero began, but she cut him off.

"I am _not _going to let those Animals die for me, Fiyero," she growled, her eyes burning.

He grabbed her arms. "They are here because they were willing to risk their lives in order to free you," he said through gritted teeth. "Are you going to throw that away by getting captured again?"

She was quiet and he wrapped his arms around her more fully. "I won't let you, Elphaba." He kissed her temple, then swung himself down. "I'll go and help them out. Take her somewhere safe!" he called at the Horse, who nodded.

"I will."

"No!" Elphaba tried to get off, but the Horse raced away and she had to hold on tight to keep herself from falling off. "Fiyero! No, take me back!"

"I'm sorry, Elphaba," the Horse said apologetically. "I promised him and Glinda."

"I'll hex you if you don't stop running right now!"

"Your Jaguar friend Dawyn said she'd eat me if I let you go," he said. "I'm sorry, but I have no choice."

Elphaba threw her head back and screamed in pure frustration and anger. "Fiyero!"

* * *

**Oh, Fiyero. You're so brainless.**

**Next chapter is horrible. I don't have another word for it. I'm being completely honest when I say that I felt _bad _about writing the next chapter, but I felt like I had to. I'm sorry. You'll see.**


	18. Chapter 18

**AN: I could make excuses here, apologise for what is to come, try to placate you... but I doubt it will be of any use, so let's just get on with it.**

**Nia, you're probably going to want that Fiyero you gave me back after this chapter, but you're not going to find him. I hid him very, very well.**

* * *

**Chapter 18.**

"Retreat!" Fiyero shouted at the Animals that were currently fighting the Gale Force. Some of the Animals had already escaped. A few had been killed, though there were much more casualties among the Gale Force soldiers than there were among the Animals.

"Fiyero!" Cohvu suddenly appeared next to the prince and handed him a rifle. "Works better than a sword."

Fiyero flashed the other man a small grin. "Thanks."

Back to back, they fired at the Gale Force soldiers, knocking them down and killing some. The less brave ones were already retreating, but there were still many that were trying to kill the Animals with their spears or rifles.

He knew Elphaba must be furious with him right now and he felt bad for tricking her, but it had been necessary. She was essential for the Resistance and she needed to be kept safe. No-one had told her what this mission really was – it was bigger than just rescuing Elphaba. Fiyero, Dawyn, Glinda, and Cohvu had come up with a plan together, a plan that involved a whole lot of Animals, several distractions, and hopefully eventually the death of Madame Morrible and the Wizard.

As he was out here fighting, a couple of poisonous Snakes were making their way into the Palace and to the Throne Room, hopefully without being seen. They'd take out any guards they'd meet on their way. Meanwhile, some of the tiniest Animals – Bugs and a few small Birds – were already creeping inside so that they could open the door for the Snakes. They'd take out Morrible first, to keep her from using her magical powers; the Birds would distract her, the Snakes would bite her. The Snakes would then take out the Wizard as well and sneak out again while the Gale Force was still distracted by all the other Animals outside.

It was far from fool-proof, but he hoped it would work.

They managed to fight off the Gale Force and force them to retreat back to the City, after a while. They stayed on guard, though, hovering near the edge of the forest, with the Gale Force standing on the city walls, watching them.

"They'll come back," Cohvu, who was next to Fiyero, said. He was clearly out of breath, but he wasn't hurt. "They always do."

Fiyero nodded. "I figured as much." He glanced over his shoulder once and his heart broke. All those Animals…

_It's for a good cause,_ he told himself. _They volunteered. They knew the risk, but they were willing to take it if that meant having a shot at killing Morrible and the Wizard and saving Elphaba._

But that didn't mean it didn't hurt to see so many of them dead. Oz, he was glad Elphaba was not here to see this.

But that's where he was wrong.

* * *

"Elphaba?" the Horse said nervously. "Come on, we have to go. Dawyn is going to kill me when she finds out."

"No." Elphaba gritted her teeth and kept walking – alright, limping – forward through the woods. "I want to know what happened."

"There were gunshots, Elphaba!" the Horse said. "It's not safe!"

"Then go," she said. "You've done your duty. Thank you for your help." She pushed through a wall of bushes and branches without waiting for him. When one of the branches snapped back against her injured shoulder, she winced and cursed… but then she saw what lay ahead of her and she froze, her pain forgotten.

"No," she whispered, horrified.

There were Animals. Dozens of Animals, lying on the floor motionlessly… all dead.

All dead because of her.

She forced herself to move forward, towards the shouting she still heard in the distance. She thought it must be near the edge of the Emerald City, though she could not be sure. She clutched the Grimmerie to her chest like it was a lifeline, stepping over Animals' dead bodies and biting back the wave of bile that rose in her throat.

_You have to get to Fiyero_, she told herself. _That's the most important thing. Go and help Fiyero, Glinda, Dawyn, and the other Animals are still fighting. There's nothing you can do for these Animals anymore._

When she caught sight of a characteristic orange-golden fur covered in black spots, however, she swore her heart stopped beating for a few moments. The Grimmerie slipped out of her grip and fell to the floor, but she hardly even noticed.

She bridged the small distance between herself and the Animal and sank down on her knees, reaching out to touch that soft fur she had so often stroked in the past two years. The fur she had buried her face in whenever she didn't want the owner of it to notice that she was crying, even though the Jaguar had always known.

The sound that escaped her lips was something between a cry and a howl, almost animal-like. She buried her face in Dawyn's fur now, too, sobbing her heart out and wrapping her arms around her friend. She felt Dawyn's sticky blood on her fingers and that only made her cry harder.

"Don't cry," a quiet voice said. "It's okay."

Elphaba looked up, only to find Dawyn's eyes open now. The Jaguar was looking at her, but she could see that Dawyn's injuries were too bad for her to stay alive much longer.

"I'm sorry," Elphaba sobbed. "Dawyn… I'm so sorry."

"It's okay…" Dawyn closed her eyes again for a brief moment. "I finally repaid my debt to you," she croaked.

"You repaid that debt ages ago." There were still tears streaming down the young witch's face. "Dawyn… please. I can't lose you," she pleaded. "Please hold on."

"I can't. It's too late." Dawyn nuzzled Elphaba's hand and licked the back of it. "Don't cry, Elphaba. It's okay, really. I'm sorry for leaving you, but it was for a good cause." She looked up at the green girl. "It was a great honour," she said hoarsely, "to fight by your side. Thank you, for everything… and just so you know – I love you, Elphaba. You're the best person I've ever met, and I'm proud to have been your friend."

Elphaba hiccupped a sob, shaking her head. "Dawyn, no…"

"You'll be okay," Dawyn whispered, her eyes slowly closing. Elphaba stroked the top of her head and the Jaguar pressed her nose to the green girl's palm once more.

Then she was gone.

Elphaba cried for a long time, unable to stop or to even move. She just sat there, her arms around her friend and her face buried in Dawyn's fur the way she had so many times before and would never be able to do again after today.

"I'm sorry," a voice said above her.

She raised her head, only to find a Lioness sitting there. Elphaba recognised her as Myrie Darner, the mother of the Lion family Dawyn had been so close to. The green girl hadn't even noticed her sitting there until now – she was hidden by shadows and her fur blended in with the trees around her.

"It's my fault," Elphaba choked out, burying her face in Dawyn's fur again. "It's my fault she's gone… I told them, I _told _them to stay put and not come and save me, because I knew this would happen." She was crying so hard that she nearly couldn't breathe between sobs. "Why do people always get hurt because of me?"

"It wasn't because of you," Myrie said calmly. "Not _just_ because of you, anyway. This was about more than just rescuing you, Elphaba. Dawyn gave her life for your freedom, but also for a chance to kill the Wizard and Morrible and make things better in Oz."

Elphaba sniffled. "What?"

"It was a plan she, Fiyero, Glinda, and that Gale Force soldier came up with," Myrie said. "Saving you was obviously a priority, but that wasn't all this mission was about. You shouldn't feel guilty, Elphaba. This was her choice. I know it hurts – we loved her, too. She was like a daughter to me. It's terrible that we lost her, but please don't blame yourself."

Elphaba didn't say anything. She just cried. Myrie nuzzled her cheek and it only made the green girl cry even harder, because it reminded her so much of Dawyn – her best friend, her partner in crime, the one who always had her back.

But not the only one, she suddenly remembered. She sat up and wiped her nose with her sleeve, looking at the Lioness beside her. Dawyn was gone, but Fiyero and Glinda were still alive and they needed her help. There would be time to grieve later.

"I need to get to Fiyero," she said.

Myrie immediately caught her meaning and nodded. "Hop on."

Elphaba did just that.

* * *

The Gale Force soldiers guarding the City suddenly recoiled, eyes wide as they whispered and pointed at something. Fiyero and Cohvu exchanged a glance and then both turned their heads to follow the soldiers' gazes, unsure of what was going on. What they saw made their jaws drop.

Elphaba was sitting on the back of a huge Lioness, her hair and her tattered dress blowing behind her and the Grimmerie cradled to her chest with both arms. Her face was blank, but her eyes were flaring like there was a fire burning inside of them, more intense than even Fiyero had ever seen them.

The Lioness stopped and roared, and the Gale Force soldiers raced their rifles. Elphaba hissed and made a hand gesture, somehow knocking the rifles from their hands.

Fiyero gaped. "How did she…"

"Her emotions are enhancing her powers," a new voice suddenly said behind them and when the two men turned around, they found Glinda there, gracefully landing in her bubble. She looked at them.

"Morrible explained that once when we still took her Sorcery classes back at Shiz," she said. "Magic can be channelled through a person's emotions. That especially goes for Elphaba – you've seen what she can do when she's upset, Fiyero. She's obviously upset now."

"She shouldn't even be here," Fiyero muttered, never taking his eyes off the dark-haired witch. "She must have seen all the Animals that died…"

"Not just any Animals." A Lion walked up to them, two cubs beside him. Fiyero recognised them as the Darners and suddenly realised that the Lioness Elphaba was riding was the mother of the family.

The cubs were crying and the father looked at the prince now with a sad look in his eyes.

"It's Dawyn," he said. "Dawyn was killed during the fight."

Fiyero suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe. "_What_?!"

"I'm so sorry, Fiyero." The Lion shook his head. "There was nothing we could do. She was too badly hurt – we couldn't help her anymore."

Fiyero knew he could not let his grief take over right now. Dawyn has been as amazing a friend to him as she had been to Elphaba, but this was not the time, nor the place, to dwell on her death.

It explained Elphaba's current mood, though, and Fiyero's heart ached at the thought of what she must be going through right now. He could only imagine how heartbroken she must be, but she did not show it. Instead she funnelled it all into a fierce and destructive anger, storming forward on Myrie's back. When the soldiers tried to grab other weapons, a blast of magic suddenly escaped from Elphaba, knocking the soldiers all over.

And then Morrible was there, standing on top of the City walls, fuming with rage.

"Kill them!" she screeched at the Gale Force soldiers scrambling back to their feet. "Kill them _now_! They murdered our Wizard!"

Those words sent a ripple of excitement through everyone present, though for different reasons. Fiyero's breath caught in his throat and he looked at Cohvu. "It worked."

Glinda squealed. "Oh my Oz, it actually _worked_!" she cheered. "The Wizard is dead!"

"Attack!" Morrible screamed, raising her arms to the sky. A lightning bolt lit up the air and thunder rumbled as dark cloud gathered above them all, rain slowly starting to fall. "Kill them all!"

Elphaba shot something out of the palm of her hand – an energy ball of sorts, as far as Fiyero could tell – and Morrible caught it in her own hand just in time, narrowing her eyes at the dark-haired witch. Glinda conjured up her bubble and flew over to her best friend, landing by her side, intending to help her.

"Elphie?"

"Stay out of this, Glin," the emerald witch warned, eyes on Morrible. "I don't want you to get hurt. Get out of here and take Fiyero to safety."

"But Elphie –"

"Please?"

Glinda relented and nodded. "Alright." She rose in her bubble once more, but then Morrible suddenly caught the bubble in a beam of magic, grinning maliciously.

"Finally," she hissed. "You won't escape me this time, dearie." She glared at Elphaba, then at Fiyero and all of the other Animals present. "None of you will."

"Glinda!" Elphaba leapt off Myrie's back and ran over to where Glinda was flying high up in the air, trapped in her own bubble. She let out a cry and whirled around to face Morrible again, shooting another energy ball at her, which the older woman easily dodged.

"Is that all you've got?" the Press Secretary asked with a contemptuous sneer.

Elphaba shook her head, wet strands of hair sticking to her face and neck. "I'm just getting started." Her shoulder and leg – and every other body part that had been hurt in the past few weeks, which practically meant _everything _– ached, but she ignored the pain for now. There was no time.

Fiyero came running forward with a spear, stopping at a relatively safe distance and throwing the weapon at Glinda's bubble. As he had hoped, it popped, releasing Glinda from Morrible's magic. The blonde fell a few metres down with a shriek and Cohvu shot forward to help her up and get her out of there, soon disappearing with her between the trees of the forest behind them. The Animals were now slowly retreating, too, recognising that there was not much they could do.

Fiyero recognised it as well. He knew Elphaba wanted revenge on Morrible for Dawyn's death, but he feared she wasn't strong enough to take on the evil fish-woman right now. He had to keep her from getting hurt.

He ran over to her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "We've got to get out of here."

"No!" She struggled weakly, but he could tell that she was in pain. "Fiyero, she has to die. She _has _to."

"She will," he said. "Later. You can't do this now, Fae." He quickly pulled her out of the way to avoid another of Morrible's magical beams and he lifted her onto Myrie's back. "Go! I'm right behind you!"

"No!" Elphaba said hotly, but before she could say or do anything else, Myrie jumped aside, dodging another energy ball of Morrible's.

"He's right, Elphaba," the Lioness said over her shoulder. "We can't win this. Not here, not now. We have to go."

And then Morrible caught Fiyero in her magical beam.

He shouted and Elphaba whipped her head around, eyes widening when she saw what was happening. "Fiyero!"

Morrible pulled him up so quickly that Elphaba did not even have time to move, let alone do anything to prevent this from happening. She cackled as he landed on the wall, amidst at least a dozen Gale Force soldiers.

"At least I have him!" Morrible yelled at Elphaba. "And I will get you, too, dearie. I will get all of you!" She turned to the soldiers that were now holding Fiyero, her eyes gleaming. "Execute him!" she ordered harshly. "Execute him _right now_, before he, too, makes a miraculous escape!" She turned back to Elphaba.

"Elphaba, run!" Fiyero shouted, but he was quickly shut up when one of the soldiers kicked him in the stomach. Elphaba went to jump off Myrie's back again, but the Lioness suddenly started running, away from the City and away from Morrible… and away from Fiyero.

"Myrie!" Elphaba pulled hard at the Lioness' fur. "Take me _back_!"

"There's nothing you can do," Myrie said over her shoulder. "I need to keep you safe." Her voice softened. "I promised Dawyn."

"No!"

"I'm sorry, Elphaba." The Lioness kept running, and Elphaba could do nothing but helplessly watch the Emerald City disappear from sight, tears blurring her vision when she realised that she had most likely seen Fiyero's face for the last time.

* * *

**I must say I was kind of proud of that last line. Such a dramatic musical reference. :D**

**Seriously, though - this hurt. Doing this really hurt me. I wasn't cackling as I wrote this chapter - I think I was close to crying. And yet I did it anyway.**


	19. Chapter 19

**AN: A quick update for you guys... because you were all so devastated :').**

**So apparently some of you were hardly affected by the Animal/Dawyn thing, but freaked out over Fiyero; and for some of you it was the other way around. Interesting.**

**I doubt this chapter will make things better, but hey, it's an update. I'm going back into hiding now, bye!**

* * *

**Chapter 19.**

The moment Myrie arrived at the nearest Animal hideout, where most of the other Animals had gathered as well, Elphaba let herself fall off the Lioness' back and slammed the Grimmerie onto the floor before her, frantically flipping through the pages.

"What's going on?" she could hear someone ask beside her, but she didn't even look up to see who it was.

"Morrible has Fiyero," she heard Myrie's soft reply. "She was about to execute him when I took Elphaba away… he is probably dead by now."

Elphaba squeezed her eyes shut for a moment in an attempt to keep her tears at bay, but one escaped anyway, slowly making its way down her cheek. She wildly wiped it away and opened her eyes again, starting to flick through the pages of the Grimmerie with renewed determination.

Someone knelt down beside her and placed a paw on her shoulder. "Elphaba?"

It was Doctor Dillamond. She only gave him a brief glance before looking back at the book in front of her.

The Goat shook his head. "Elphaba," he said gently. "There's nothing you can do."

"I lost my parents." She was crying full-on now, tears dripping down her face, but she completely ignored them as she focussed on the Grimmerie and her voice was strong, not betraying any emotion as she spoke. "I lost my little sister – my _only _sister. And today I lost Dawyn." She finally looked up at Dillamond, and in her flaming eyes he could see all the emotion she was withholding from her voice.

"I'm _not_ going to lose Fiyero too."

"You might not be able to help it," Dillamond tried, but she just shook her head.

"He's all I have left," she said, her voice finally breaking. "I can't lose him. I _can't_."

With that, she fixed her gaze on a page of the book and started chanting.

"_Eleka Nahmen Nahmen Ah Tum Ah Tum Eleka Nahmen_," she chanted, closing her eyes and focusing all her energy on the magical powers she had inside of her. "_Eleka Nahmen Nahmen Ah Tum Ah Tum Eleka Nahmen…_"

"Elphaba…"

"_Eleka Nahmen Nahmen Ah Tum Ah Tum Eleka Nahmen. Eleka Nahmen Nahmen Ah Tum Ah Tum Eleka Nahmen._"

"Elphaba, this isn't working."

"Shut _up_!" she snapped before continuing. "_Eleka Nahmen Nahmen Ah Tum Ah Tum Eleka Nahmen_. _Eleka Nahmen Nahmen Ah Tum Ah Tum –_"

"Stop this right now!" Myrie pulled the book away from her and glared at the witch with her eyes narrowed. "You can't bring people back from the dead, Elphaba! You're only going to make yourself crazy doing this. There's nothing you can do for him. He's gone!"

"Myrie!" Dillamond exclaimed in shock, but Elphaba just went very still, her arms freezing mid-movement and her breath hitching in the middle of a word. Because Myrie was right. What was she even doing? Fiyero was long gone by now.

Dillamond gave the Lioness an angry look before looking at Elphaba again. "Elphaba?"

"No, she's right." Her voice was flat and completely devoid of emotion as she spoke, her gaze still fixed on the useless book. She tore her eyes away from the Grimmerie, but did not look at anyone or anything else as she rose to her feet and limped away, not even sure of where she was going.

She ended up sitting against a tree with her head tilted back to rest against the trunk, her eyes closed. She felt numb. She knew she should feel something, but she was glad she didn't, for she wasn't sure if she could bear it. He was gone. The love of her life was dead. She was all alone now – she had no-one left.

She remembered the conversation she'd had with Fiyero and Dawyn, right after Nessarose had died.

"_You still have us,_" Fiyero had said. "_We'll help you, and we won't leave you._"

"_Never_," Dawyn had said. Elphaba remembered arguing that they didn't know that for sure.

"_We can't promise you that nothing will happen_," Dawyn had then said. "_But even if something happens to us, Elphaba, you still have so many others who care about you._"

"_It's not the same_," Elphaba had insisted, and the words Dawyn had uttered after that were playing through her head now.

"_You're strong. You'd survive."_

She hadn't really believed Dawyn then, and now she realised that she had been right in doing so. Was she strong? Maybe. But could she survive without Dawyn and Fiyero? She probably could, but why would she? What reason did she have to go on without them?

"I'm sorry, Elphaba."

The dark-haired witch didn't even open her eyes.

Myrie padded closer on cushioned paws, but she still stayed at a safe distance.

"For what I said," she clarified. "That was insensitive of me."

Elphaba just shrugged. "It was true, wasn't it?"

Myrie sat down and Elphaba could feel the Lioness' gaze on her, even with her eyes closed.

"I know it must hurt," Myrie said quietly. "I know how close you and Fiyero were. I've seen you together so many times… I saw you two fall in love in the first place. You loved him, and –"

"Don't," Elphaba interjected, turning away from the Animal. "Just don't."

Then something Myrie said got through to her and she opened her eyes and turned back, a look of surprise on her face. "Wait. What do you mean, you saw us fall in love in the first place?"

Myrie smiled sadly. "A long time ago," she said, "when I was very young, both of my parents were killed and I was taken captive."

Realisation slowly dawned in Elphaba's eyes. "You…"

"I was locked up in a cage," Myrie said, "and treated badly by humans. And then two students took me away and set me free."

Elphaba was gaping at her now. "_You _are the Lion cub?" she choked out.

Myrie nodded.

"It's what made me join the other rebellious Animals in the first place," she said. "As I grew up, I was tempted more than once to just leave Oz and never come back, but I couldn't. Because I knew that among all the bad people in Oz, there were also still good people around – people like you and Fiyero, though I didn't know your names back then – and that's why I had to stay. There was something to fight for."

Elphaba swallowed, trying to hold on to her numbness. She wouldn't let herself feel. Not now, not ever. She couldn't. It hurt too much.

"I'm glad," she croaked finally, "that we made a difference for you."

"You made a difference for a lot of Animals," said Myrie. "And you can keep doing so, Elphaba."

The young witch shook her head. "I won't," she said. "I can't. It's over now." She hugged her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

Myrie hesitated. "Elphaba…"

"Just go," the green girl said softly. "I want to be alone."

Myrie nodded. "Alright. You know where to find me, if you need me." With a final glance over her shoulder, she left.

Elphaba sat there for a long time, unmoving, willing herself not to feel – which was harder than she'd first thought it would be.

"Elphie?"

She opened her eyes. Glinda was there, with Cohvu by her side, both of them looking immensely worried.

"Elphie, I'm so sorry," Glinda said softly, taking a step towards her friend. "Doctor Dillamond just told us. How are you doing?"

Elphaba shrugged listlessly. The blonde came to sit down beside her, looking at her solemnly.

"Elphie…"

Somehow, that ridiculously perky nickname, spoken in maybe the most serious tone she had ever heard from the bubbly blonde, did it – it shattered her resolve of not feeling anything. Almost immediately, her eyes filled with tears; and then she broke down.

Glinda wrapped her arms around the green girl and hugged her tightly, holding her as she sobbed her heart out into the blonde's shoulder.

"It's okay, Elphie," she whispered. "It's okay to cry. I'm so sorry, sweetie."

Elphaba didn't say anything – she cried for a long time and then slowly grew quieter, just the occasional sob or whimper escaping her lips, until she fell completely silent. She then rose to her feet suddenly, shrugging Glinda off, and she went back to the Animal village.

She picked up the Grimmerie and her hat and then left without speaking another word to any of the Animals. She returned to Glinda and pushed the thick magic book into her hands.

"Here," she said. "You'll need it to protect yourself."

Glinda's eyes were wide. "I can't even read this, Elphie!"

Elphaba hesitated. "You're right. But…" She faltered, then shook her head. "You need _some _sort of protection, Glinda." The blonde heard the catch in her friend's voice. "I can't lose you, too."

"You won't, Elphie." Glinda hugged her tightly. "You won't. Cohvu is taking me home," she said, looking up at the former Gale Force guard. "He'll take me back to Gillikin, to my parents. I'll be safe there." She looked at her friend. "You can come, too," she offered quietly. "Come with me, Elphie. You'll be safe as well, and then at least I can help you."

Elphaba shook her head and took the book back. "No, Glin. I can't. But thanks for the offer. Just… stay with your parents. Stay safe."

"Of course." Glinda looked worried. "But what are _you _going to do, Elphie?"

Elphaba pulled a thick branch from a tree and started tying twigs around it. Her first broom had snapped in two when she fell and her second had been left behind when she surrendered herself in exchange for Glinda, so she had to make a new one.

"I," she said as she finished tying the broom and held it in one hand, placing her hat on top of her long raven hair with the other hand, before grabbing the Grimmerie, "am going to give them the Wicked Witch they want me to be."

With that, she cast the flying spell on her new broom and mounted, shooting up high into the sky before Glinda could even bid her goodbye.

* * *

"We need to find her, Cohvu," Glinda insisted even as she sat on a horse behind Cohvu, already on their way to her parents' home. "She's emotionally unstable right now. Who knows what she might do?"

"And how do you suppose we do that? Find her?" Cohvu shook his head. "We have no idea where she is or how to locate her. I'll go and look for her, Glinda, if that's what you want, but I will take you to your parents first. At least then _you _will be safe."

Glinda sighed. "But I want to help."

"You can't," Cohvu said gently. "Not right now. Elphaba wants you to stay safe, and so do I."

She fell silent, letting her forehead fall against Cohvu's back. She had her arms wrapped around his waist to keep herself from falling off the horse and she could feel Cohvu covering her hands with one of his own, squeezing softly.

"Don't worry," he said soothingly. "She'll be alright. I'll find her."

"Yes, but when?" Glinda asked sadly. "It might already be too late by then."

Cohvu stiffened. "What do you think she might do, then? Something drastic?"

Glinda shrugged and heaved another sigh. "I don't know, Cohvu. I really don't know. I can only imagine how hard Dawyn's death must have hit her, but Fiyero? She loved him more than life itself, Cohvu. They loved one another more than anything else in the world, and even though Elphie is the strongest and bravest person I've ever known, I wouldn't be surprised if she turned herself in to Morrible, or something like that. I think that, right now, she's capable of anything."

She pressed her cheek to Cohvu's back and closed her eyes, trying to hold back her tears. She just could not believe that Fiyero was really gone. She had thought she had loved him, once, a long time ago. She'd been friends with him for so long. She still did love him, in a way – not the way she had wanted to love him back when they were together at Shiz, but still. He had been like family to her, and it hurt her so badly to know that he had now been killed by Morrible in what had most likely been a painful way.

"It's okay," Cohvu said again, trying to reassure her. "Everything is going to be alright."

Glinda could only hope that he was right.

* * *

**By the way - I posted a fluffy one-shot yesterday in an attempt to ease your pain... in case you haven't seen it yet, please check it out and let me know what you think :).**


	20. Chapter 20

**AN: I know, I know... I killed Dawyn and I truly am sorry about that, but I felt like her role was played out and not _all _the good guys can survive.**

**Luna, I'm really glad you think that, because I'm always afraid that I'm starting to get predictable... I mean, it's hard to keep coming up with original ideas and keep up the suspense, without getting predictable or boring your readers, when you've written... *looks back* exactly 60 fanfiction stories, 59 of which were of the same fandom. (Has it really been that many already? Wow.)**

**I hope this... sort of makes you feel better... a bit?**

* * *

**Chapter 20.**

"M-Miss El-Elphaba?"

The raven-haired witch whirled around, frowning when she saw the group of flying Monkeys hovering outside the tower window - _again_. They'd come here every few days or so, reporting back to her what they'd seen and heard in the rest of Oz and claiming that they wanted to help her.

Chistery was sitting in the window sill now, looking at her.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, more harshly than she had intended.

Chistery approached her cautiously. "Here to h-help," he said. "Help Miss E-Elphaba."

Elphaba shook her head.

"No," she said brusquely, turning around. "I don't need your help. Get out of here."

"Stay," Chistery insisted, coming farther into the room, some of his friends following. "Help."

"I said no!" Elphaba spun around again, eyes flaring. "Get out! I will _not _let anyone else get hurt because of me. Go someplace safe and be happy, and stop bothering me!" With that, she stomped out of the room and down the spiralling stairs.

The rooms here were all the same – dark and damp. She never lit any fires or candles. She told herself it was for fear of being discovered, but she knew that it went deeper than that – fire was light, and she simply could not stand light anymore. Not since the light had disappeared from her life.

She had contemplated just jumping out of the window of her study, which she had set up in the highest tower of the castle. She wouldn't survive if she did and she knew it. She'd thought about it more than once, but for some reason, she had never done it. She just wasn't _like _that. She tended to turn self-destructive whenever she was upset, yes, but not to _that _point.

And besides, she had a battle to fight.

In the six weeks since Fiyero's death, there had been five attempts on Morrible's life. Four of those had come from Elphaba, using spells and potions she had found in the Grimmerie and in other spell books she had discovered in the dusty library of the castle she was staying in. The fifth had been by the Animals, a few weeks ago, when a couple of poisonous Scorpions had sneaked into Morrible's rooms. As far as Elphaba knew, though, they had been discovered and instantly killed by Morrible.

News about the death of Prince Fiyero Tiggular of the Vinkus had gone out the same night after the battle, when Morrible had caught him. No-one celebrated, but not many people mourned, either. Most were just afraid.

Morrible had also told the Ozians about the death of their beloved Wizard, which had shaken everyone to the core. The old hag had sworn to avenge His Ozness by hunting down and murdering every single Animal out there. A reward would be given to everyone who would bring her an Animal; a bigger award was promised to the one who would get her Glinda; and if someone actually managed to find and capture Elphaba, he or she would be rewarded with all of Munchkinland to rule over – since they did not have a governor anymore, anyway – as well as an entire room filled with gold.

Of course, no-one _had_ found and captured Elphaba. They'd spotted her, though. Every day, she left on her broom, trying to pick up news – and trying not to think of her scouting trips with Dawyn as she did so – and showing herself to the people, cackling. They always shot at her. They always missed. But Elphaba often caught herself hoping that one of them would just hit her already and get it over with.

Killing Morrible, however, was her biggest priority. She would do it, one way or another. She wasn't sure how or when, but she would murder Morrible or die trying.

Her skirts made a swishing sound as she paced up and down the room, her face shrouded by a curtain of her dark hair. There was a bed in this room, but she hardly ever slept in it – if she even slept at all, she often just dozed in a chair upstairs. She couldn't even remember the last time she had properly washed up or brushed her hair, not to mention the last time she had eaten a decent meal. She did enough to keep herself alive, but no more. It wasn't important. All that mattered now was her mission and she didn't care what happened to her afterwards.

She stopped in front of the window, staring out of it. It wasn't as high up as the window in the tower, but still high enough so that she could see the shiny Emerald City far off into the distance. Kiamo Ko was situated on the top of a hill, which Elphaba used to her advantage – between the three towers the castle had, she could see all over Oz. The tower she had made her study of was the highest, but the other two were high enough for her to see other parts of the land – the northern tower looked over the hills of the Glikkus and Gillikin, and from the western tower, she could see the Vinkun royal castle a couple of miles away.

Once she'd realised that, she hadn't set foot in the western tower again.

She thought about it now, though. About Fiyero's parents, down there in that castle. They hadn't seen their son for over two years. They had no idea what he had been up to. And now they had found out that he was dead and they didn't even know why.

Guilt washed over her and she turned away, hugging herself. She stalked across the room and went back up the stairs to her study. Ignoring the flying Monkeys that were now scattered all over the room, she moved to the standard the Grimmerie was sitting on and he opened the thick magic book, studying the spells inside. Muttering the words to herself, she flipped the pages, cocking her head to one side whenever she came across an interesting spell.

Chistery tugged at her dress. "M-Miss Elphaba?"

She shrugged him off, not even acknowledging his presence. Maybe if she ignored them, they'd go away. She didn't want them to stay here. It wasn't safe. Sooner or later the Gale Force would find out she was here and they'd come for her, and when that happened, she didn't want anyone else to get hurt.

Chistery tugged at her skirt again, ever insistent. "Miss Elphaba."

"What?" she snapped, glaring at him.

"We stay," the Monkey said again. "We help."

"You can't help me." She shook her head wildly, her ebony hair dancing across her shoulders and back. "No-one can help me. I'm beyond help, anyway. I can do this by myself, Chistery. Just go."

"No."

She blinked. "What did you say?"

"No," he repeated stubbornly. "Not go. Stay."

She threw her arms up into the air in pure frustration. "Fine!" she cried, tired of fighting with the Monkeys. "Then stay! But I'm not going to feed you, and if you do get hurt, it's your own fault. Understood?"

Chistery nodded and she exhaled slowly, pinching the bridge of her nose and closing her eyes for a moment. What was she even doing? She didn't really know anymore. She had no idea what she was thinking or feeling. She hardly allowed herself to even think or feel anything – anything that wasn't about Morrible, anyway. She refused to think of Dawyn and she never spoke Fiyero's name aloud. Instead she took her grief and turned it into rage, a cold and calculating anger that helped her focus on the mission that lay ahead of her.

She started going through the Grimmerie again, grunting in frustration when she did not find anything. Suddenly feeling trapped inside that tower, with all those Monkeys sitting around and watching her, she grabbed her broom and leapt out of the window, flying off towards the sunset.

She only realised that she was heading closer to the Vinkun king and queen's castle when it loomed in front of her and she froze in mid-air, stilling.

Part of her wanted to go there. A part of her wanted to fly over to that castle and beg the king and queen, Fiyero's parents, for forgiveness, because she killed their son… but a much larger part of her recognised that she did not deserve their forgiveness, even if they were willing to give it to her.

And so she turned away and flew in a different direction, scaring some villagers, but their screams of fear and anger did not satisfy her as they usually did. Who was she kidding, anyway? She could play the Wicked Witch, pretending to be evil and to ravel in people's fear as she flew all over Oz, cackling… but she would never _be _the Wicked Witch, no matter how hard she tried.

If only Dawyn was here… she would know exactly what to say to make Elphaba feel better. She'd know what to do. Or Fiyero, who would hold her and reassure her that everything was going to be alright, calming her down and righting every wrong in her life, just by being there.

She flew back to Kiamo Ko and hid away in her bedroom the rest of the day, locking out the flying Monkeys and staring out of the window until darkness settled outside and there were silent tears streaming down her face. From the wind, of course, which was sharp and cold tonight. That was all.

* * *

"M-Miss Elphaba?"

Something touched her face and she jumped, instantly starting awake. "What…" She rubbed her eyes and then looked blearily at the person who'd woken her. "Chistery, what in Oz are you doing?" She frowned. "How did you get in? I locked the door."

"Fly." He pointed at the window. "F-fly out of w-window," he said. "Fly into l-lower win-window."

Elphaba stared at him, feeling stupid for not thinking about that herself. There was no glass in the windows here, so the Monkeys could basically just fly in and out of every room as they pleased.

She ran her fingers through her tangled hair, suppressing a yawn. She couldn't believe she had fallen asleep here in the window sill, of all places. How long had she been asleep? She wasn't sure what time it was now, exactly, but she couldn't have slept for very long – it was still dark outside.

"S-someone h-here," Chistery said, furrowing his brow as he focussed on pronouncing the words. "V-visitor to s-see you."

"What?" Elphaba rose to her feet, looking at the Monkey warily. "Who?"

"M-Miss Gl-Glinda," said Chistery.

The young witch froze. "Glinda? No. That's not possible." She shook her head. "I told Glinda to… Oz dammit!" she suddenly cursed and then stormed past Chistery and out the door, through a hallway and down another staircase, to the main entrance hall of the castle.

Sure enough, there was Glinda, dressed in a simple but elegant pale pink dress and wearing an anxious expression on her face.

When she saw her friend, her face brightened for a moment. "Elphie!" Then it fell again and she shook her head. "Oh, Elphie…" she said sadly. "What have you been _doing _to yourself? You look awful!"

Elphaba snorted. "Gee, thanks. Why are you _here_, Glinda?" she demanded irritably without so much as pausing to take a breath. "I told you to stay safely at home, didn't I? Get out of here and go back to your parents. How did you know I was here, anyway?"

"There were rumours," said Glinda. "Actually, there are rumours about you staying at a lot of places… but since this castle belongs to Fiyero's family, I figured this to be the most likely option." Her face softened. "Elphie… look at you. This isn't you. Is this all because of Fiyero?"

"Don't say that!" Elphaba rounded on the blonde, her dark eyes wild. "Don't say his name!"

"Elphie, this isn't _healthy_!"

"Were you going to tell or ask me anything," Elphaba growled, "or did you just stop by to lecture me? Because in that case, I think you'd better go."

"No." Glinda suddenly looked pale. "No, I… I came for a reason… but now I'm not sure whether I should tell you or not."

Elphaba arched one eyebrow. "Why?"

Glinda made a helpless gesture. "Just… look at you, Elphie," she said softly. "If this is what Fiyero's death did to you… I don't want you to get your hopes up, because I think that if they're crushed again, you're going to get even worse than you are now."

Elphaba's heart was pounding in her chest now and her mouth was dry. "What do you mean, get my hopes up?" she demanded shrilly. "Get my hopes up about what?"

Glinda hesitated. "It's being said… that is, some of the Vinkuns whisper it, but I don't know for certain if it is true… okay, actually I do – kind of, anyway. The moment I heard these rumours, I sent Cohvu to find out if they were true – he stayed with me ever since he dropped me off, the sweetheart. I really enjoyed his company. Anyway, so he went to see, but he couldn't be _entirely _sure, and -"

"Glinda!" Elphaba snapped, what little patience she had in the first place now worn very thin. "Spit it out already!"

Glinda took a deep breath. "Elphie…" She locked eyes with her friend. "We think Fiyero is still alive."

* * *

**Dun dun duuuuun.**

**I'm already on chapter 8 of writing my next story! (And I haven't even completely finished writing this one yet... hihi.) I'm just really loving this new one - it's basically Titanic: the Wicked version :).**


	21. Chapter 21

**AN: I'm glad you all seem to be a little less murderous now.**

**SnowQueen: No - she offered it to Glinda, but Glinda didn't take it because she can't read it, so Elphaba took it with her instead ;).**

* * *

**Chapter 21.**

Elphaba stared at her blonde friend for a few everlasting moments.

Then, much to Glinda's horror, she burst out laughing.

Not really laughing, actually. It was more like… cackling, Glinda realised with growing worry. That maniacal Wicked Witch cackle of hers. Had Elphaba completely lost her mind? She feared so.

Just as abruptly as she had begun, the green witch stopped, boring her eyes into Glinda's.

"No," she said flatly. "For Oz's sake, Glinda – I can't believe you came all this way to tell me a stupid fairytale. Or are you just doing this on purpose to torture me? He's dead, Glinda. I know he is. Morrible would never have let him live. She wanted to get to me by murdering him, and she succeeded. That is all."

"But Elphie, he _really_ –"

"Either you've suddenly grown very cruel in the time since we parted ways," Elphaba snapped angrily, "or you've just become really stupid. I don't know which one it is. Frankly, I don't even _want _to know. But let me tell you this: if this is a joke, I swear to Oz I will _never _speak to you again; and if you genuinely believe this preposterous story, then I guess you really _are _a dumb blonde!"

Glinda flushed and her eyes narrowed.

"Elphaba Melena Thropp," she said in a dangerously low voice, "I sure hope the real you is still somewhere underneath there and she'd better come out really soon, because right now you are behaving like a wicked witch!"

"Well, it seems like we both finally suit our titles then, don't we?" Elphaba spat before spinning around and stomping back up the stairs. Glinda could see that there was still a slight limp in her walk because of the leg she had broken a couple of months before, and she shook her head. Clearly Elphaba had not been taking care of herself at all.

"Come back here, I wasn't finished yet!" Glinda ordered, stomping her foot childishly. Elphaba just snorted.

"Elphaba!" the blonde yelled. "_Listen _to me! He's alive! Fiyero is alive! Your spell somehow saved his life!"

Elphaba froze dead in her tracks.

"My… what?" she asked faintly, her face now so pale that it was almost white.

Glinda nodded earnestly.

"You put a spell on him, didn't you?" she said softly. "Right after Morrible first took him away. It…" She hesitated. "Cohvu saw him, and… we think your spell changed him into a scarecrow, Elphie. So that he wouldn't be able to get hurt."

"A…" Elphaba stumbled, just barely keeping herself upright by reaching out to seek support from the wall. She slowly descended the stairs again.

"That's what we think happened," Glinda said quietly. "But we're not entirely sure. Cohvu only got a brief glimpse of the scarecrow as he was being escorted down the Yellow Brick Road by a few Gale Force soldiers. We think they're taking him back to his parents."

"Why would Gale Force soldiers escort him?" Elphaba asked sharply. "If he really is Fiyero, Morrible wouldn't just bring him back home and do nothing about it anymore. This is nonsense, Glinda. He's not alive. He can't be." She turned away from her blonde friend. "Now please just go, and stay with your parents until I find a way to kill Morrible. It shouldn't be much longer now."

"Is that what you've been doing all this time?" Glinda asked. "Trying to find a way to kill Morrible?"

"Yes." Elphaba pulled back her shoulders, a grimace of pain flitting across her face when the motion tugged at her previously hurt collarbone, but luckily Glinda did not see that. She knew the blonde was right – she hadn't been taking care of herself at all, and some of the wounds from her fall over two months before still hadn't completely healed. Maybe they never would. She couldn't imagine that a damp and cold dungeon, and then later a damp and cold castle, were very good surroundings for broken bones to heal. Especially since she hadn't exactly been resting.

Glinda shook her head. "Elphaba –"

"Would you go already?" the raven-haired witch said, not turning around to face Glinda. "Go home, Glinda."

Glinda crossed her arms and raised her chin. "Fine. Give me the Grimmerie."

Elphaba scowled at the wall. "What?!"

"Give me the Grimmerie," Glinda repeated. "I want to look for a way to counter the spell you put on Fiyero, so that I can prove to you if he really is the scarecrow or not. I know spells from the Grimmerie are irreversible…"

"They're not," Elphaba admitted, finally turning around. "Morrible said they were, but I figured out relatively quickly that they're not. Not all of them, at least." She made a helpless gesture. "I couldn't change the Monkeys back to the way they were before, without their wings; but some spells have counter spells."

"Help me find one," Glinda said softly. "Please?"

Elphaba sighed, and her shoulders sagged.

"Fine," she muttered. "But only to prove you wrong and get this ridiculous notion out of your head."

She took Glinda upstairs to her tower, leading her to the Grimmerie and opening the book. She searched for the spell she had tried to cast right after Fiyero had been taken away.

"Here it is," she said. "I think this one does have a counter spell. Hold on…" She flipped through the pages until she found the counter spell. "Here. This one."

Glinda peered over the green girl's shoulder. "I can't read that."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "It's a lost language, Glin. You've never been able to read it. I don't even know how I am."

"Cast the spell yourself, then," Glinda suggested enthusiastically. "Do it right now. Just think of Fiyero – or the scarecrow – whatever – and cast the spell, and then we'll see who is proven wrong."

Elphaba sighed, but complied, listlessly chanting the words. Glinda half and half expected a sign – a strange magical light flowing from Elphaba's fingers, a lightning bolt in the night sky, a bunch of pink glitters, _anything_. Nothing happened, however, and Elphaba looked at the blonde.

"Go, then," she said tiredly. "Find that scarecrow of yours and see for yourself that he is not Fiyero. Just leave me be, Glinda. I'm going to find a way to murder Morrible, and after that you probably won't ever see me again, anyway."

Glinda's eyes widened. "What do you mean?" she demanded in a high voice.

Elphaba shrugged, but Glinda caught a flash of the weariness and pain in her dark eyes before she hid it again.

"I'm limited," said Elphaba.

Glinda set her jaw and held her head high. "Well," she said, turning around with a swish of her skirts, "you can think all you want, Elphie, but I'm not going to let that happen. Killing Morrible? Sure. I'm all for that. But I'm not giving up on you, and I haven't given up on Fiyero, either." She looked into Elphaba's eyes. "I'm going to prove to you that you still have something to live for, Elphaba," she said solemnly. "One way or another."

Elphaba scoffed softly. "Good luck with that."

Glinda left and Elphaba sank down to the floor, staring ahead of her for a long time without really seeing anything, her head filled with unwanted thoughts.

* * *

"Oz dammit!" Elphaba yelled, hurling the spell book across the room. One of the flying Monkeys leapt out of the way with a shriek at the last moment and the book hit the wall instead, falling down onto the floor. Elphaba buried her fingers in her hair and gritted her teeth, frustration radiating all off her. She had tried so many things already – how had this not worked yet? How was Morrible still alive?

There was a way to kill that evil fish. There had to be. No-one was invincible, not even Morrible… she just had to find the right way to do it.

"Miss Elphaba?" Chistery said, coming through the door. "Miss Gl-Glinda is –"

He was cut off by a high-pitched voice, which triumphantly shouted, "_I told you so!_"

Glinda came running into the room, her cheeks flushed and her eyes sparkling.

"I was right!" she cried. She grabbed Elphaba's hands and started dancing through the room, ignoring the fact that Elphaba did not in the least move with her. "He's alive, Elphie! Fiyero is alive! He was the scarecrow, and now he's human again! I saw him with his parents in their castle, right here in the Vinkus!" She started pulling at Elphaba's hand. "You have to come with me right now!"

Elphaba looked at the blonde warily. "Glinda…"

"Just come with me," Glinda insisted. "_Please_, Elphie. What have you got to lose?"

_My sanity. My heart – or what's left of it._ Because if Glinda turned out to be wrong, if this scarecrow hadn't been Fiyero after all… well, Elphaba honestly didn't think she could handle that. She tried so hard not to get her hopes up, but with Glinda bouncing all around her, promising her that Fiyero was still alive, it was hard not to.

"Please, Elphie," the blonde girl pleaded. "_Please_. I swear to you on my Granny's grave that you won't regret coming with me. Please."

Somehow, for some reason, Elphaba let Glinda convince her and she followed as the other woman ran down the stairs and ushered Elphaba outside, creating a bubble around the both of them. She skilfully flew them over to the castle the Vinkun royal family lived in.

When she landed them before the gates, Elphaba suddenly recoiled, shaking her head.

"I can't do this, Glin," she said, suddenly near tears, which surprised herself probably more than it surprised Glinda. "I really can't."

"Yes you can." Glinda took her hand and squeezed it. "Think about this, Elphie. If Fiyero really is still alive…"

"And if he's not?" Elphaba asked. "Then what?"

Glinda bit her lip. "I…" She faltered.

Elphaba smiled faintly, but it did not reach her eyes. "I always loved that about you, Glin," she said. "Your optimism. But…"

"I know." Glinda swallowed. "I'm sorry, Elphie. I was so focused on what would happen if you and Fiyero were reunited again, that I didn't really think of the possibility that I could be wrong." She sighed. "All Cohvu and I saw, after all, were a scarecrow being escorted down the Yellow Brick Road, and the next day a man with sandy hair in the Vinkun king and queen's castle. But for all I know, that man was Fiyero's father, or one of the servants…" She hung her head. "I guess I didn't really think this through."

"It's okay," said Elphaba, even though it wasn't. She straightened her back and drew back her shoulders, taking a deep breath. "Well, we're here now, anyway, aren't we?" She didn't really want to do this. Correction – she _really didn't _want to do this. But Glinda had gone through all this trouble for her… and she felt that no matter what, she at least owed Fiyero's parents an apology for ruining their lives. Even if Fiyero turned out to be alive now – which she doubted – she still owed them an apology for keeping him away from them for two entire years.

Glinda gave her friend an encouraging smile and knocked on the heavy wooden gate. "Hello?" she called. "Is anyone there?"

The gate opened just a crack and a guard poked his head out. "Who is there?" The moment he laid eyes on Elphaba, his eyes widened and he shouted, "Witch!", before throwing the gate fully open and being joined by five of his colleagues, all looking ready to impale Elphaba on their lances.

* * *

**Hello, Queen of Cliffies here. I have to uphold my title. Sorry... not sorry :3.**

**By the way, I expanded my fic _If You Close Your Eyes _with a second chapter. Because no matter how much I loved the initial cruel ending, I agreed with you guys that Fiyero would never really do such a thing.**


	22. Chapter 22

**AN: Emerald Minded Fictionist? *prods you with foot* Are you alive?**

**Okay, so apparently some of you fell unconscious... don't worry, this chapter will clear some things up. (Like why Fiyero didn't come to look for her the moment he was set free.) There won't be any Fiyeraba for a while, though... sorry.**

**Azaisya: Thank you! I'm glad you think so - it's something I've worried about a few times myself.**

**Luna the Zekrom: I became the Queen of Cliffies because I wrote them so often (and loved it), and now I sometimes write them because I am their Queen and I want it to stay that way :P.**

* * *

**Chapter 22.**

Glinda held up both hands. "Gentlemen, gentlemen!" she said, giving them a dazzling smile. "There is really no need for this!"

"It's Glinda the Good!" one of the guards shouted and the men rushed forward. It was clear from the expression on their faces that they knew about the rewards Morrible had promised to those who would bring her Glinda and Elphaba, and they were quite motivated by it.

Glinda shrieked and Elphaba pulled her away as they started running.

"Glinda!" she yelled. "Bubble!"

"What?"

"Make a bubble!" Elphaba repeated, resisting the urge to roll her eyes.

Glinda stopped running and concentrated, creating a bubble around herself and her friend. They soared up, out of the guards' reach.

"Oz," Elphaba said, out of breath. "I can't believe we didn't think of a proper disguise before we did this."

"Yes, well, we had other things on our mind." Glinda looked down at the guards. "Now what?"

Elphaba shrugged. "Go in through a window."

Her best friend looked horrified. "Elphie," she protested, "that is incredibly rude!"

"What else did you want to do?"

Glinda thought about that, but couldn't come up with a proper answer. She huffed. "Fine, then." She then navigated her bubble towards the back of the castle, out of the guards' sight, and they entered through a large, open window.

Glinda landed gracefully and looked around. "Where are we?"

"How should I know? I've never been here, either." Elphaba poked her head out of the room and looked into the hallway, which was empty. She beckoned Glinda. "Come on."

They wandered through the castle, which turned out to be huge. They had to hide from a maid or a sentry every now and then, but the hallways were mostly deserted.

"There's a sentry guarding that door – I think it leads to the throne room," Elphaba whispered as she glanced around the corner. "How are we going to get in?"

"Are you sure you want to go to the throne room, Elphie?" Glinda asked softly, and her friend nodded.

"Yes," she said. "I want to talk to his parents."

Glinda nodded. "Okay. Leave the sentry to me," she said, before rounding the corner. Elphaba watched as the blonde started talking to the man, twirling a strand of hair around her finger and giggling flirtatiously, tossing her hair and batting her eyelashes. Before long, she had lured him far enough away from the door for Elphaba to sneak into the hallway and through the door, into the throne room.

The king and queen weren't on their thrones – they were sitting at a table near the far corner of the room, going over some papers. When they heard the soft sound of the door closing, they looked up. Their eyes immediately widened.

"Elphaba," the king said carefully. "Right?"

The young witch nodded mutely, surprised that the king even knew her name. Most people only knew her as the Wicked Witch of the West, after all.

"Are you here for Fiyero?" the queen asked softly, and Elphaba sucked in her breath.

"Yes," she said, her voice hoarse. "Are you saying he's…"

"He is alive," the king confirmed.

He looked like he was going to say something else; but before he could, the world started spinning around Elphaba and she collapsed in a dead faint.

* * *

When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Glinda's face. The blonde was hovering over her in concern. When Elphaba turned her head, she could see the queen sitting on a chair opposite the couch the green girl was lying on, while the king was pacing up and down nearby.

"Elphie?" Glinda asked worriedly. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Elphaba whispered, trying to sit up. Glinda helped her and propped some cushions in her back.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," the queen said quietly. "We didn't mean to shock you."

Elphaba blinked at her.

"We know who you are," the king spoke up, never stopping his pacing. "Fiyero told us a lot about you when you were all still at Shiz, and then after that whole… thing… between you and the Wizard happened, he wrote us a letter to tell us that he was going to look for you and that he might not be in touch with us for a long while. We received one letter from him afterwards, a little less than a year ago, in which he told us he had found you and he was helping you. He said he was happy."

Elphaba choked back a sob, desperate not to cry in front of the king and queen of the Vinkus.

"And then about five weeks ago," the king growled, "we received word that our son is a traitor and he has been punished for his crimes, and that he would be escorted back home by the Gale Force as soon as he was in any condition to travel again."

Elphaba could feel shivers running down her spine and she suddenly felt cold all over. 'Punished for his crimes'? 'In any condition to travel again'? What did that mean? What had they done to him?

She closed her eyes for a moment, and she could feel Glinda gently stroking her hair.

"Maybe she should rest," she heard the blonde tell the king and queen. "She hasn't been taking care of herself at all lately..."

"No," Elphaba croaked, opening her eyes and sitting up again in protest. "I want to know."

Glinda sighed. "Elphie, you look like you can't even _walk _right now," she said. "You need to rest."

"I need to see him," the green girl insisted.

Glinda crossed her arms. "No," she declared. "Not until you get some rest."

Elphaba glared at her.

"You know he's alive now," said Glinda. "That's the most important thing, isn't it?"

"I need to see him, Glinda!"

"He's asleep right now," the king said gruffly. "He's been through a lot, too. He needs his rest."

"Hamold," the queen said irritably, "I think you're being unnecessarily rude right now. She loves our son, can't you see that? She just wants to see him. She thought he was dead!"

"No," Elphaba muttered, lowering her gaze. "He's right to be rude to me. Frankly, I'm surprised you haven't called the guards on me yet to deliver me to Morrible, or lock me up in your dungeons." She sighed and looked at the king, then the queen. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm so sorry I took him away from you."

"Oh, sweetheart…" The queen shook her head and reached out to cover Elphaba's hand with her own. "You didn't take him away from us," she said gently. "He chose you over us, and I can't even blame him. I know what it's like to love someone so much that you would give anything for that person." She glanced at her husband briefly. "It's not your fault, Elphaba. None of this is."

Elphaba looked down and the queen squeezed her hand, then rose to her feet. "Come," she said. "I'll take you to him."

Elphaba's head shot up at that, her eyes wide; but Glinda spoke up hesitantly.

"Given what you've told me, Your Majesty… I'm not sure that's a good idea."

"Please, just call me Lori," the queen said. "Everyone does." She looked at Glinda. "Don't you think that maybe –"

Glinda shook her head. "I don't know," she admitted. "But with the state she's currently in, I don't know if she could handle it."

"Handle what?" Elphaba demanded, whirling around to face the queen. "What's wrong with him? Is he that badly hurt?"

"He has been hurt," the queen said softly. "They whipped him, and he has been beaten, too."

"It sounded like your spell saved him just in time, Elphie," Glinda said. "It indeed did turn him into a scarecrow, preventing them from hurting him further. Physically, anyway."

Elphaba felt like she couldn't breathe. "What do you mean, physically?" Her voice sounded high and shrill even to her own ears. "Glinda, _what did they do_?!"

The blonde's shoulders sagged and she suddenly looked defeated and tired.

"Morrible put a spell on him," she said, not looking Elphaba in the eyes. "The queen… I mean, Lori… just told me."

"He's not himself," the queen agreed. "Part of that is probably due to the traumatic experience he's been through – he's jumpy and anxious and he hasn't been sleeping well at all in the past days since he arrived here. But, Elphaba…" She shook her head. "I asked him about you," she said. "I asked him what had happened to you, if you had been captured as well, or maybe even killed…" She trailed off, clearly unsure of how to explain this.

"He's…" Glinda took a deep breath and locked eyes with Elphaba. "He's afraid of you, Elphie," she said, talking quickly as if that would lessen the sting of her words. "Morrible did something to his mind, she put a spell on him, I don't know… but he's scared of you. It's almost like he doesn't know you anymore."

Elphaba could only stare at her friend, her mind reeling. "Take me to him."

"Elphaba…" the queen began, but the dark-haired witch shook her head.

"I have to see him," she said. "Take me to him."

Lori hesitated, but nodded and led the way out of the room and through the hallways, to a closed door. She slowly opened it and went inside. "Yero?"

Elphaba's heart was pounding in her chest as the queen said, "Elphaba is here to see you," and then beckoned the green girl into the room. Elphaba took a deep breath and then stepped through the door.

Her eyes were immediately drawn to the man lying in the bed and she felt faint and dizzy. It was him. It was really him. She could tell that he was hurt, but there was no doubt whatsoever that it was really him.

When she looked into his eyes, however, she almost recoiled. He stared back at her with wide eyes, but they weren't _his _eyes. There was no love, no recognition in them whatsoever.

"Fiyero," she whispered, still unable to believe her own eyes. It was the first time she had spoken his name in six weeks.

He scrambled backwards on the bed, his gaze still fixed on her. When she took another step into the room, he winced.

"Get away from me!" he spat, both venom and fear in his voice. His eyes seemed almost blank to Elphaba, their usual sapphire spark missing. "Get _out_!"

"Fiyero, it's Elphie," Glinda said, approaching the prince and smiling reassuringly at him. "Don't you remember her?"

Fiyero just shook his head wildly, watching Elphaba suspiciously, but she was rooted to the spot.

"Elphaba?" Glinda tried, reaching out to touch Fiyero's shoulder and shake it. "Fae? Come on, Fiyero – you must remember her!"

Fiyero kept on shaking his head. "Get her out," he almost begged Glinda. "Get that Witch away from me!"

"It's no use, Glin," Elphaba spoke up softly, her eyes still on the man she loved. "I don't know what Morrible did to him, but it's not going to be turned around by a few words. I think it must be a very powerful spell."

Glinda's face fell, but Elphaba just kept on staring at Fiyero, emotions whirling inside of her – so many of them at the same time that she had difficulty telling them apart. She tried to push them away, but they kept coming back, plaguing her. There was a voice in the back of her head whispering that Morrible had won and that Elphaba had always been right – that she was a curse to everyone around her, causing them to get hurt and die, all because of her. She had already lost too many people…

And now Morrible had done this to him. It was clever, Elphaba had to admit. When Elphaba's spell had worked, Morrible had realised that she could not kill the prince and so she had settled for the second best way to break Elphaba.

She had made sure Fiyero didn't love her anymore.


	23. Chapter 23

**AN: Yes, I pulled a Mockingjay on you. The idea popped into my head and I could not resist.**

**I noticed a lot of you are on the floor after the previous chapter...**

**PerlogAnnwyl: Sure you can ;).**

**Luna: I know, I felt the same... don't worry, though - I'm not going to end this Mockingjay-style.**

* * *

**Chapter 23.**

"I can't believe you would do this to her," Glinda hissed.

Fiyero blinked at her. "What? What did I do to whom?"

"Elphie!" the blonde cried, watching helplessly as the prince's face immediately hardened.

"Come _on_, Fiyero!" she pleaded. "Don't you remember her? Remember Shiz?"

"Of course I remember Shiz." He nodded. "You and I dated, and Boq was always stalking you, trying to get your attention."

"Right," Glinda spurred him on. "And then what?"

"He got together with Nessa," said Fiyero. "Nessarose Thropp. We were all friends."

"Yes! And why did you break up with me?" Glinda held her breath.

Fiyero shrugged. "I guess we just… grew apart?"

The blonde let out a frustrated shriek. "_No_, Fiyero! You broke up with me because you were in love with _Elphaba_!"

He snorted. "You're telling me I was in love with the Wicked Witch of the West?!"

"_Are_ in love!" Glinda corrected him. "You _are _in love with her, and she's not wicked! She's the best person I have ever met!"

Fiyero stared at her. "Did she put a spell on you?"

"Ugh!" Glinda buried her face in her hands, shaking her head. "For Oz's sake, Fiyero – _listen _to me. You fell in love with Elphaba at Shiz. She defied the Wizard and you left Shiz to look for her, remember? You've been saving Animals together for nearly two years!"

Fiyero's eyes were wide. "She did put you under a spell, didn't she?" he whispered in horror. "To make you believe all this. You're telling me _I _am crazy, but I can't believe _you _don't remember what really happened! What are you talking about, saving Animals with her? She kidnapped me and held me captive for two years, and when I tried to escape, she turned me into a scarecrow – which I still would be right now if you hadn't changed me back! She's a wicked witch, Glinda!"

"She's my best friend, Fiyero, and the woman _you _love!"

He turned away from her. "I'm not going to listen to this nonsense any longer," he declared sullenly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I am rather tired. I'm going to lie down for a little bit. And _please_, Glinda – get that wicked witch out of my house by the time I wake up." With that, he lay down on his bed and Glinda had no choice but to leave him alone.

Once outside, she leant her back against the wall for a few moments and closed her eyes. She couldn't believe Morrible had actually succeeded in doing this. She had always thought that Elphie and Fiyero's love was the strongest thing ever in existence… but nothing was stronger than dark magic could sometimes be, and she had no idea what she could do to reverse this.

She shuffled back to the library, where the king and queen were having tea.

Lori smiled at her when she came in. "Here, have some tea yourself," she urged, gesturing for a maid to pour Glinda a cup as well. "How did it go?"

Glinda shook her head miserably. "Terrible," she answered as she sat down and cradled the cup in her hands, letting the hot liquid warm her a little. "He won't listen to me. He thinks Elphaba put a spell on _me_ now, when _he _is the one with the false memories. He thinks she kidnapped him!"

King Hamold huffed. "Maybe she did."

"Hamold!" his wife said, shocked, but the king just glared at her.

"Who says she didn't?" he demanded. "All we have is the word of the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good, both of whom have betrayed our Wonderful Wizard. Our son says he's been kidnapped by the Witch; the Witch says he loves her and chose to go with her. Honestly, I'm more inclined to believe my son."

"You've seen his letters." Lori narrowed her eyes at her husband. "You've seen him when he came home for Lurlinemas, his first year at Shiz, and he told us everything about Elphaba. You saw the sparkle in his eyes. You've read the letter he sent us to tell us that he and Elphaba were helping Animals and that they were happy together. Sweet _Oz_, Hamold, I can't believe you are even considering this! I thought you were never a fan of the Wizard, either!"

"I didn't like him," Hamold grumbled, "and I didn't like all his policies, especially not regarding the Animals, but that does not mean I believe that he was evil, as well as his Press Secretary!"

Glinda sighed tiredly and pushed some hair behind her ear. "There's not much I can do or say to convince you, Your Majesty," she said. "I can only give you my word." She stared down at her tea, then glanced at Lori. "Where is Elphie?"

"Asleep," Lori replied, still staring daggers at her husband. "She looked exhausted, so I made her lie down in one of our guest rooms for a while."

Glinda nodded. "And how is she?"

"Not very well," Lori replied truthfully. "She pretends to be fine, but she's been very quiet. I think this really hurts her."

"Of course it does," said Glinda softly. "She loves him more than her own life, and now he doesn't even know who she really is anymore."

Hamold snorted. "If they really loved one another that much, Fiyero would remember her."

"Morrible put a spell on him!" Glinda snapped at the king, suddenly incredibly frustrated and angry with him. "We told you that! I've never seen two people who love one another more than Elphie and Fiyero love each other, and I will find a way to fix this if it's the last thing I ever do! Did you know that Elphie was basically planning on _killing_ herself after she'd defeat Morrible? She wanted to free Oz from Morrible, no matter what, but she didn't care about her own life anymore. Not without Fiyero. In the six weeks she thought he was dead, I think she hardly slept or ate anything. And now he turns out to be alive, but he's not _really _alive, because he's not himself anymore and it's killing her! Can't you see that?!" With that, Glinda rose to her feet and stomped from the room, leaving the king and queen in stunned silence.

* * *

When the blonde girl entered the guest room a maid had told her Elphaba was sleeping in, she found her friend sitting cross-legged on top of the blankets on her bed, piles of magic books around her as she was flipping through one. Her hair was still uncombed, her eyes were blood-shot and even wilder than before, and her entire body radiated a frustration so great and tangible that it bordered on panic.

"Why isn't there anything in these damned books?" the raven-haired witch hissed, tossing the book she had been looking at aside. Glinda noted that there were more books thrown off the bed and onto the floor.

Elphaba grabbed another magic book from the heaps around her and opened it, continuing her search.

Glinda approached her timidly. "Elphie…"

The green girl glanced up for a moment.

Glinda shook her head. "Did you sleep at all?"

"No." Elphaba grated her teeth in annoyance. "Of course not. I _can't_, Glinda, don't you see? Not until I fix this."

"You won't be able to fix anything if you keep neglecting yourself," Glinda said softly. "Please, Elphie, just get some rest. I promise I'll look through these spell books for you, but you need to take care of yourself."

"Why?" Elphaba snarled. "For whom? I don't care and Fiyero doesn't anymore, either. Who else is there?"

"Me," said Glinda, effectively silencing her former roommate. She moved closer and sat down on the edge of the bed, reaching out to place a hand on Elphaba's arm.

"Elphie," she said softly. "If you won't stay healthy for yourself, then please do it for me."

Her friend looked at her, and Glinda could suddenly see the brokenness in her eyes.

"I need him back, Glinda," she whispered, lowering her eyes. "I just need him back."

"I know." Glinda hugged her, holding her tightly. "Oh, Elphie… I know. But we'll find a way, I promise you that. Just like we'll find a way to kill Morrible."

"And if we don't?" Elphaba asked, her voice uncharacteristically small. "What if Fiyero stays like this? What if Morrible stays in power and keeps trying to kill us until she finally succeeds? You can't promise such things, Glin."

"You're right," Glinda acknowledged. "But I am not ready to give up quite yet and you shouldn't be, either. There has to be _something _we can do. Here." She pushed the books off the bed and gently but firmly urged Elphaba to lie down, pulling the blankets over her. "Get some sleep, sweetie. You need it. I'll go through these books while you sleep and when you wake up, come and find me and we'll keep searching together. Okay?"

Elphaba nodded reluctantly and Glinda gathered the books up into her arms before leaving the room. Not wanting to speak to the king and queen quite yet, she avoided the library and settled down in one of the sitting rooms instead. She asked a maid to light a fire in the fireplace and to bring her some tea, and she opened the first magic book and started reading.

She was joined a few hours later by Queen Lori, who apologised for her husband's rude behaviour earlier.

"Fiyero choosing love over his family hit Hamold hard," she admitted. "Of course it hurt me, too… he's our son. We love him. But I understood his decision, and I respected it. Hamold didn't – not really. He has always resented Elphaba, even before he met her, because Fiyero chose her over us."

"I can imagine how that must have felt," Glinda said softly.

"It was no excuse for his behaviour, however." Lori sighed. "He'll come around… eventually."

Glinda nodded and went back to her reading. Lori just sat there, lost in thought.

They both looked up when Elphaba entered the room, still looking exhausted, but slightly better than before.

"Hey," she greeted the two women tiredly and Glinda smiled at her.

"Hey." She scooted over and patted the couch, and Elphaba joined her. Lori rang for a maid and asked her to bring in a tray of food, despite Elphaba's protests.

"You're going to eat, Elphie," Glinda said sternly. "No discussion possible."

The green girl eventually relented and nibbled on some toast. "Did you find anything?"

Glinda's face fell and she sighed. "No. Not yet," she said. "But we'll keep looking."

Elphaba nodded mutely, staring down at her plate. Glinda squeezed her hand.

"Elphaba?" the queen said softly. "I just want to let you know that you are welcome to stay here for as long as you want. Both of you," she added, looking at Glinda. "There have only been a few staff members that have seen you two – I made them swear not to tell anyone, and I know they won't. They can be trusted. Not all of them are so honourable, though. You should be careful. Try not to show yourself to anyone unless absolutely necessary."

Glinda suddenly looked a little pale. "The sentries that saw us when we tried to come in through the front door!" she said. "I had completely forgotten about them…"

"Don't worry," Lori assured her. "It's already taken care of. They came running in not long after you two arrived, to tell us that two traitors of Oz were trying to get into our castle. Hamold took care of them. As long as you two are careful, you should be fine."

"Thank you," said Elphaba quietly, not looking up from her plate.

"Yes," Glinda said, meeting Lori's eyes and smiling sadly at the queen. "Thank you."

Lori returned her smile, but hers was sad as well. "You're welcome."

* * *

**The next chapter is going to kill you all.**

**Chapter 26 is going to be even worse.**

***sings a song Scar from Lion King style* BE PREPARED! *cackles***


	24. Chapter 24

**AN: Here you go. Such a happy chapter :D. (Yes, that was totally sarcasm.)**

**Ozzie: Actually... this is kind of creepy. Read the chapter and you'll see what I mean.**

**Luna: Because I can't resist the cliffies? O:)**

**Fiyerabaforever: You'll see *smirks***

* * *

**Chapter 24.**

Lori softly knocked on the door to the guest room Elphaba was staying in. When there came no response, she opened the door and poked her head inside the room. "Elphaba?"

The green girl was sitting in the window sill, staring outside. When Lori entered the room and approached her, she turned her head.

The queen smiled at her. "How are you feeling?" she asked gently. "Did you sleep well?"

Elphaba sighed. "I slept," she said wryly. "That in itself is a miracle."

Lori squeezed her shoulder in an attempt to show her sympathy. "Cohvu has arrived here. Glinda is telling him what's going on. They think maybe he can help with a plan for killing Morrible."

Elphaba nodded listlessly.

"I also talked to Yero again," Lori said. "We all did. But…" She trailed off.

"But he doesn't remember me," Elphaba finished for the queen, her voice bitter. "Not as anything but a wicked witch, anyway."

"I'm sorry."

Elphaba turned to face the older woman. "Does he remember everything else?" she asked. She tried to make the question sound casual, but the intensity burning in her eyes betrayed her. "Is he… is he still the same person?"

Lori hesitated, taken aback by the odd look on Elphaba's face, but she nodded nonetheless.

"Yes," she said. "He remembers his childhood, his family, his friends… Glinda. He remembers the past two years differently, though, and he doesn't remember anything about you before that at all. He doesn't understand why you're here, why we're all telling him about you – everything he once knew about you has been erased or twisted in his memory. But yes, he is still the same person. As long as we don't bring you up, he's just like he always has been."

Elphaba nodded slowly, clearly lost in thought.

"Elphaba?" the queen asked cautiously. "What is going on?"

The young witch lowered her gaze and stared out of the window again for a moment. Then she said softly, "I found a spell. To… to kill Morrible."

Lori's face lit up. "You did? Elphaba, that's wonderful!"

"Yeah…" Elphaba bit her lip. "Only it's not as simple as it sounds. I have to make a potion, which I then have to throw down at her feet… which means I have to get quite close to her and she has soldiers everywhere. I'd have to break into the Emerald Palace and get to Morrible's chambers, all without being seen, and then I'd have to throw the potion and cast a spell at the same time, all whilst hoping that Morrible won't kill me before I finish. It's risky, to say the least; but there doesn't seem to be another way. She deflected every magical attack I have sent her way so far. Of course I could just shoot or stab her, but that would be no easier than this way – and at least with the potion, she won't have any magical defences."

"We'll find a way to do this," Lori said. "Glinda knows about magic, too… and Hamold and I know something about battle strategies," she added. "We can all help come up with a plan."

"That's not all, though."

Lori looked at her questioningly.

Elphaba sighed. "If Morrible dies…" She took a deep breath. "The spell she cast on Fiyero will become permanent."

Fiyero's mother slowly exhaled when she realised what that meant. "Oh."

"Yeah." Elphaba grimaced. "It's how spells work… some people think that when a sorcerer dies, his magic dies with him and all the spells he has ever cast will vanish, leaving everything as it was before the spells were cast. That's not true. If I had died while Fiyero was still a scarecrow, he'd have stayed a scarecrow forever; and if Morrible dies with him still under the influence of her spell, he will never again remember who I am."

"Then we need to find a way to lift her spell first," said Lori firmly, "and then we'll help you defeat Morrible. Glinda says she thinks she's close to figuring it out – Cohvu is helping her going over a couple of magic books right now."

Elphaba just sighed again. "Yeah."

Lori touched her arm. "Don't lose hope." She smiled encouragingly at the emerald witch. "Things will work out in the end. You'll see."

The door opened and Glinda bounced into the room. "Elphie," she gushed, "I just had the most _splendiferous _idea _ever_. Like, _ever_."

Lori laughed and Elphaba eyed her friend warily. "What kind of idea?"

"I know how to bring Fiyero's memory back," the blonde declared. She paused for the dramatic effect, revelling in two expectant pairs of eyes watching her intently.

"Spit it out," Elphaba ordered irritably when the pause became a little too long.

Glinda sighed gracefully. "You're so impatient, Elphie. Okay, here we go. Are you listening?" She beamed at both of them and then announced, "A true love's kiss."

Lori's face fell slightly and Elphaba turned away, shaking her head.

"I should have expected that," she muttered, rolling her eyes. "You hopelessly romantic ball of fluff. Life is not a fairytale, Glinda. Even if it was," she added sarcastically, "I wouldn't be the one handing out true love's kisses. That's the princess' job in fairytales, isn't it? I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not the princess. I'm the witch. Witches don't do true love's kisses. And frankly," her voice became quieter, "I don't think they do happy endings, either."

"Of course they do." Glinda nodded firmly. "You're a modern-day witch, and a good one at that. Fairytales are old-fashioned, anyway. In this fairytale, the witch gets the prince and they both live happily ever after. That's how it works. Now go and kiss him."

"No," said Elphaba crossly. "And even if I was going to try this… how do you suggest I would? He would never let me kiss him. He hates me, remember?" She kept her voice steady and her face blank when she said that, but Glinda saw the pain in her eyes.

"He's asleep," Lori spoke up suddenly. "You can kiss him while he's still asleep."

Elphaba stared at the queen in exasperation. "Not you, too! Come _on_, let's get real here! You're not _seriously _suggesting a _kiss _will break Morrible's spell?!"

"Well, why not?" Glinda wanted to know, and Lori shrugged helplessly.

"I don't really think so," she said. "But then again, I know nothing about magic… and it's worth a try, isn't it? I don't believe it will magically fix the spell, but maybe it jogs his memory. Somewhere deep down he must remember you, Elphaba. All we need is a way to bring those memories back to him. Maybe you kissing him will do just that."

"Come on." Glinda tugged at Elphaba's arm. "Let's go right away."

For some reason, Elphaba allowed herself to be dragged out of the room and downstairs to Fiyero's, where, indeed, he was asleep in his bed. Glinda shoved her friend into the room and then closed the door to give the couple their privacy. This would work. She was sure of it.

Elphaba, as she slowly approached the bed Fiyero was in, was not so sure. In fact, she was absolutely positive that this was not going to work… but she figured Lori was right – it was worth a try.

She looked at his sleeping form and then leant down, her heart hammering in her chest as she pressed her lips to his.

She pulled away and stared at him. Nothing happened for a moment. Then his eyelids fluttered and his eyes slowly opened. He blinked at her.

She held her breath, hoping against hope that somehow, this absolutely ludicrous plan had worked and maybe, just maybe, he would remember again… something. Anything.

His eyes widened.

Then he opened his mouth and shouted, "Witch!"

She steeled herself, instantly pulling her walls back up, her face twisting into that blank and emotionless mask she'd been wearing for the past six weeks.

"Shut up," she snapped. "I'm not going to hurt you!"

"You put a spell on Glinda," he accused. "And on my mother… they all think you're good, not wicked at all, but I know better! You're a wicked witch! Get out!"

She shrank back to the door, but changed her mind at the last moment. "Fiyero?"

He glowered at her, his eyes filled with disgust and hatred. It shattered her heart into a thousand tiny pieces, but she didn't dare show it to him.

"Are you happy?" she asked softly.

His eyes narrowed. "I would be much happier if you just disappeared from my life," he snarled. "Or better, even – if you'd just jump out of the highest castle tower and _die_, so that I'll be rid of you forever and you wouldn't hurt anyone else! _That _would make me happy! Now get out of my _sight_!"

She just nodded and left the room, refusing to give in to the tears she felt bubbling to the surface.

She knew what she had to do now.

* * *

When King Hamold passed by an open door and glanced inside, he stopped dead in his tracks. "Elphaba? What are you doing?"

She looked up and blew a strand of raven hair away from her face. "Preparing."

Hamold frowned. "For what?"

"Killing Morrible." When the strand of hair came falling back into her face, she impatiently brushed it aside with her fingers, straightening her back for a moment and stretching her arms above her head. She'd been sitting there, studying the Grimmerie, for hours already; learning this spell and that, anything that looked useful to her. By now she must know half the book by heart, but she figured she could better be prepared too well than not well enough.

The king let out a short laugh. "You're going to kill Madame Morrible?!"

"It's the only way," Elphaba hissed, rising to her feet to check on the potion that was bubbling in a pot in the corner of the room. "The only way to free Oz and make sure the Animals won't get hurt again."

Hamold shook his head. "You really think everything will be fixed if you kill a single person?" he wanted to know and Elphaba nodded.

"Yes," she said. "Because Morrible has been behind this all along. It's her fault the Animals were ostracised and hurt in the first place. The Wizard was evil, but Morrible was the real mastermind. If I kill her, the leaders of Oz would have to pick a new ruler…" She trailed off, grimacing slightly when she realised what that meant. There was no-one to represent Munchkinland. The Glikkuns had always followed the Wizard. Gillikin and Quadling Country might send sensible representatives to the Emerald City to deliberate about the issue… and then King Hamold himself would have to go.

She shook it off. Everything was better than Morrible continuing to rule the land.

"I know you don't trust me," she said to Hamold. "And you have every reason not to. But I also know you were never an advocate of taking away the Animals' rights – you told me that yourself – so I hope you are willing to trust me on this. If I succeed, Oz will need a new ruler." She looked up at him. "Make sure it's someone good."

Hamold nodded gruffly. "Of course. We wouldn't just choose anyone, you know," he said, acting a bit offended. "We never chose Morrible, either – our Wizard did. And we didn't even really choose our Wizard," he added as an afterthought. "He just… became increasingly popular among the people and then crowned himself ruler of Oz."

Elphaba smiled wryly. "That sounds like him." She carefully closed the Grimmerie and filled a glass vial with the potion she had been making, shaking it slightly and holding it up against the light. It seemed to be good. She filled two more vials – in case something went wrong, but she got more than one opportunity to throw the potion at Morrible – and then looked around, making sure she wasn't forgetting anything.

Hamold was frowning now. "Wait a clock-tick. I thought Lori said that if you kill Morrible, her spell on Fiyero will become permanent," he said. "Not that I necessarily believe there _is _a spell," he added gruffly, glaring at her, "but still. If there was, why would you do this without lifting it first?"

"Because," she said through gritted teeth, turning around to look at him, "Fiyero is better off without me, anyway."

Hamold could only stare at her.

"He was always better off without me," she said quietly. "He threw away everything for me. His life, his family… Glinda. He almost died because of me. All I have done is cause him pain and suffering, no matter how hard he always denied that, and I just… can't do that anymore." She exhaled slowly. "Glinda and I were so focused on trying to undo Morrible's spell, but why would we? So that he can remember everything again? Everything I put him through? Trust me, Your Majesty – it's better this way. For him, anyway. He'll be happier, and I'll be… dead, I suppose."

She huffed a wry laugh. "I'm not making myself any illusions. Even if I succeed, I'm never getting out of there alive. But it's okay." She looked at the Grimmerie once more, then strode across the room to get her broom and her hat. "As long as Fiyero and Glinda are safe and happy," she said, "that's all that counts."

She looked at the king. "Take good care of him," she said softly. "And… I know it's a lot to ask, but please take care of Glinda, too… at least let her stay here for a while longer. This will devastate her, but I have to do it. She'll get over it eventually."

With that, she brushed past Hamold and went in search of Glinda, whom she found in the parlour with the queen and Cohvu.

"I'm going out scouting for a little while," Elphaba lied, leaning down to hug her best friend.

Glinda hugged her back. "Okay." She smiled. "Don't worry, Elphie," she said. "Everything is going to be okay."

Elphaba smiled back, albeit sadly. "I know." She turned to face Lori. "I just… want to thank you again for letting us stay here," she said softly. "That's very nice of you, and it means a lot to us. And… it's good to know that even if Fiyero never regains his memories of me, he's in good hands here with you."

Glinda was watching her curiously now. "Elphie?"

"I don't think I say this enough, Glin," the green girl said, squeezing her friend's hands, "but thank you. For everything you've done for me. Being my friend, not giving up on me… I know it seems like I take you for granted sometimes, but you really are an amazing friend and I love you."

Glinda was frowning now. "I love you, too, Elphie, but… where is this coming from?" she asked, eyeing her friend suspiciously.

Elphaba shrugged. "I just spent a lot of time thinking this morning," she said. "About everything."

Glinda's face softened and she nodded. She hugged her friend again.

Elphaba squeezed her tightly for a moment before letting go. "I'm going to go now," she said lightly. She waved at both women. "I'll be back soon."

With that, she leapt out of the window, knowing she would most likely not be back at all. Ever.


	25. Chapter 25

**AN: Gee, people, calm down. No need for threats or Caps Lock. I'm just killing off Elphaba, that's all. No big deal. *cackles***

**I'm updating faster now because I'd really like to finish posting this story before I go to London... this Friday night. So daily updates from now on :). I hope that will make it a bit more bearable for you.**

* * *

**Chapter 25.**

"I know she's up to something," Glinda said anxiously. "I know it. She doesn't usually act like that."

Cohvu looked at the blonde girl. "What would she be up to, then?"

"I don't know!" Glinda sighed. "I just know that she wasn't herself just now, and it worries me. What if she's going to do something stupid?"

Lori placed a hand on Glinda's arm. "She's a grown woman," she said. "She can make her own decisions. She'll be fine, Glinda."

"She's a grown woman," Glinda agreed. "But she has just lost two of the most important people in her life in the most horrible ways possible. I don't even know what hit her harder – Dawyn's death or the spell Morrible put on Fiyero. She's hurt and she's grieving, she feels guilty… and when Elphaba feels guilty, she turns self-destructive."

"Self-destructive, how?" the queen asked and Glinda shook her head.

"I'm not sure," she admitted. "But Fiyero told me that she completely broke down after her father and Nessa had died. When I was sent to Southstairs, she flew to the Emerald City while she was still badly hurt from an incident not long before and she turned herself in, in exchange for me. And after Dawyn died and she thought Fiyero had, too, she just focused all her energy on murdering Morrible… she said to me that after she'd kill Morrible, I'd probably never see her again. I think she was counting on Morrible killing her, or maybe…" She trailed off. She didn't want to think about what else Elphaba could possibly have meant by that.

"In any case," she continued, "it's not good."

Cohvu sighed. "Well, there's nothing we can do," he said. "We don't even know where she went. And maybe we're worrying about nothing – maybe she really will be back soon."

"Maybe." Glinda rose to her feet. "But if she is not back in a few hours, I'm going to look for her."

She left the room and wandered the castle for a while before going to see Fiyero, who was sitting in the window sill in his room, staring outside.

"Hi," she said.

He turned and grinned at her. "Hey."

"How are you?" she asked as she sat down in a chair nearby.

"Fine." He looked out of the window. "I saw the Witch leaving. Is she gone for good now?"

Glinda sighed. "I hope not," she muttered. "She should be back soon, but I'm afraid she won't be."

Fiyero set his jaw. "Good."

Glinda glared at him. "She could get hurt. Or worse."

"Even better. Then at least Oz is rid of her wickedness."

"She's not wicked!" Glinda snarled, jumping to her feet. "Fiyero, _please_! You _have _to remember! Just _think_ – don't you remember her? The dance at the OzDust, when everyone laughed at her and she and I became friends? That time you and Elphaba rescued that Lion cub together, after Doctor Dillamond was removed from Shiz, and you fell in love? You breaking up with me and getting together with Elphaba? She _loves _you, Fiyero, and you love her, too – I know you do. You have to. Don't you remember her birthday, when you kissed her in front of the entire classroom and she didn't talk to you for the rest of the day? Or when you took her out on your first date and you said she was the most gorgeous girl you'd ever seen and you felt so lucky to be with her? Don't you remember telling me, after she defied the Wizard and left, that you were going to find her? That you were willing to give up everything – your education, your friends, your family, _everything_ – to try and find her, so that you could be with her?"

She was nearly breathless now, but she just couldn't stop. "You spent two years with her and Dawyn, saving Animals. She sacrificed herself to save me from Southstairs and you were so desperate to save her. We devised a plan to do just that and we did, we did save her, but Dawyn died and then Morrible caught you. Elphaba tried to save you, but you told her to run and one of the Animals took her away, and then Morrible had you and hurt you, and Elphaba changed you into a scarecrow to save your life. Don't you remember _any _of that?" she finished desperately, searching his eyes for something – anything – that told her he remembered even the tiniest bit about Elphaba.

It was fruitless, though. His eyes were cold and she saw no recognition whatsoever.

"If you have only come to tell me lies," he said in a low voice, "then I'd rather you just leave."

Glinda sighed and fell down into the chair again, closing her eyes. "Oh, Fiyero…"

She left not long thereafter, miserably sinking down in a chair in the sitting room and staring at the fire blazing in the fireplace. She couldn't believe Morrible's magic was stronger than Fiyero's love for her best friend… she couldn't believe he didn't remember _anything_. Even worse – that he hated Elphaba now. How could he? She was the one he loved more than anything in the world…

She was jolted from her thoughts when someone else entered the room. King Hamold looked surprised to see her there.

"Hello, Miss Glinda," he said. "What are you doing?"

Glinda shrugged. "Nothing, really." She sighed. "Just… thinking."

"Ah." Hamold nodded. "Well, I, um… I wanted to apologise to you," he said, sitting down in the chair opposite Glinda's and looking at the blonde girl. "For my rude behaviour towards you and your friend earlier, and for not believing you. I'm still not sure I do believe you, but I don't think you are lying to us purposefully. Maybe your perception is a bit distorted, or maybe you have been told lies… I don't know. I do know now, however, that you two genuinely believe what you are telling us, and I am sorry for treating you the way I did."

Glinda huffed, crossing her arms. "So basically you're apologising for calling us liars, but you still think we are," she stated, glaring at him. "Well, thanks for your apology, Your Majesty, but forgive me if I am not very impressed by it."

Hamold actually grinned slightly. "Fair enough. You must understand, though, that this is a complicated situation," he tried to explain. "Fiyero is our son, but we don't really know you, or Miss Elphaba, at all. It's hard for us to believe you two when our only son is telling us a different story. We simply don't know who to believe."

Glinda sighed, deflating. "I know," she said quietly. "I'm sorry. I understand how hard this must be for you… I'm just worried about Elphie. And about Fiyero, too. What if he never goes back to normal?" She bit her lip. "I don't know what that would do to him – it must be confusing for him, too. But what would it do to Elphie? If he never regains his memories of her and continues to hate her for the rest of his life?"

"Elphaba…" Hamold began hesitantly, sounding like he was not sure if he was supposed to tell the blonde this. "Elphaba seemed to think it would be better that way."

Glinda's head shot up. "What?"

"I spoke to her," he said. "A few hours ago, before she left. She said it might be better if he didn't remember her, because all she did was cause him pain and he would be better off, and happier, without her. She said she was going to kill Madame Morrible and she didn't think she would come back."

Glinda had paled and now jumped to her feet, furious. "And you let her go?!"

"I didn't think it was any of my business," Hamold said, clearly taken aback by the fiery look in the blonde's eyes.

She cried out in frustration. "Oz dammit, so _that _is what she went to do! I knew she was up to something! Stupid, stupid Elphie!" She whirled around. "I have to find her!" In the doorway, she cast a venomous look over her shoulder. "And if I'm too late," she growled, "then her blood will be on _your_ hands!"

With that, she ran out of the room in search of Cohvu, leaving a baffled King Hamold behind.

"Cohvu!" she shouted the moment she ran into the library, where she had last seen him. "I need your help!"

He immediately rose to his feet, his eyes anxious. "What's wrong?"

"It's Elphie," Glinda choked out. "She's going to try to kill Morrible without lifting the spell on Fiyero – she thinks he's better off without her, and… and Cohvu… I think she believes she's not going to survive," she finished weakly.

Cohvu nodded, all business. "Let's go."

As they ran through the hallways to look for a window big enough for them to fit through, a baffled voice reached them. "Glinda?"

She skidded to a halt, Cohvu close behind her; only to see Fiyero standing in the doorway of his room, looking confused. "What are you two doing?"

"Elphie is in danger," she said. "Cohvu and I are going to find her."

Fiyero scowled and opened his mouth, but Glinda cut him off.

"Don't even start," she snapped at him. "She is my best friend and I'm going to help her, whether you like it or not." She made to start running again, but Fiyero's voice stopped her once again.

"I'll come with you."

"What?" She stared at him. "But…"

"I don't care about that witch," he said, making her glare at him. "But you're my friend, and I care about _you_. I'm coming with you, to help you. I know you have Cohvu for that, too, but two is better than one, right?"

She threw her arms around him in a hug before pulling him with her. "Come on. We don't have any time to lose!"


	26. Chapter 26

**AN: Yeah, another update. I meant to post the previous chapter last night, but I was busy and then tired, and so I need a double update or I won't be able to post everything before London... so here.**

**Meg: Yes, up next is 26. That's what comes after 25. :P**

**Doglover645: THAT IS TOO EVIL!**

**PocketSevens: ...maybe. Maybe not. *smirks***

**GreenForGood: Thank you so much! :)**

**Alright guys, here we go. Brace yourselves.**

* * *

**Chapter 26.**

This was a bad idea. She knew that.

And yet here she was.

Because it didn't really _matter _anymore. The Fiyero she'd known was gone and she knew he would be better off for it. He'd be fine without her. He wouldn't even mourn her now – he'd probably be happy the Wicked Witch was dead.

If Dawyn were here right now, she'd try to stop Elphaba from doing this. She'd call her crazy and order for her to get out of here right now. She'd argue and she'd probably win, too; and even if she didn't win, she'd just grab the green girl and drag her out of here and back to the Animal village.

If everything was still as it was supposed to be, Dawyn and Fiyero would get her out of here, only to give her a two-hour lecture about why this was an incredibly stupid idea, how she could have gotten hurt or even worse, and did she even have any brains at all, at which Elphaba would quip something about Fiyero being brainless and he would pretend to be hurt, but he'd laugh, too; and Dawyn would just glare at her and declare that was not the point at all. But in the end they'd forgive her for being stupid, she knew. She would listen to their reasoning and admit that she could have thought this through better. They'd come up with a better plan together, which they would execute together as well, and everything would be okay.

But Dawyn was gone and Fiyero did not care anymore, and so here she was. There was no-one to reason with her now. No-one to stop her. Her only companions were the Gale Force soldiers just outside the room and the vial in her hand.

She had flown in through the window, planting her broom in a corner and hiding behind the Wizard's mechanical head. She knew Morrible still often came here – this was the place from which she ruled Oz, after all. She held meetings here, she spoke to the Ozians from the balcony of this very room. If Elphaba only waited long enough, Morrible would come to her eventually.

She recognised the fact that getting into the throne room had been much easier than getting out of it would ever be, but it didn't matter. She'd meant what she had told Glinda before, back at Kiamo Ko, when the blonde had tried to tell her Fiyero was still alive. She was limited. And her limit was drawing near.

Morrible was alone when she entered the room, the guards staying outside. Elphaba watched as the older woman closed the door behind her and padded across the room.

She threw the vial with the potion.

Morrible shrieked when something hit her feet and she spun around, looking around her wildly. When she only saw the now-shattered vial on the floor, she understood what must have happened.

She slowly turned around, scanning the room with her eyes.

"Where are you, dearie?" she called out to the seemingly empty room. "Come out!" She grinned as she slowly made her way around the room, looking behind every piece of furniture. "Come out, come out, wherever you are…" she sang. "I'm going to get you, Miss Elphaba – you know that. You might as well just come out and face me… or are you scared?" She threw her head back and cackled. "You should be. Stop hiding like a coward and let me see you!" she suddenly snarled.

Elphaba, meanwhile, had stayed behind the Wizard's mechanical head, softly chanting the spell; but she cut herself off with a yelp when Morrible suddenly grabbed her and dragged her out from behind the mechanical head, striking her across the face, causing her to fall down to the floor.

"You little witch," Morrible hissed furiously, kicking Elphaba in the side. The green girl gasped and doubled over.

"Did you really think you could just kill me?" Morrible demanded. "I've been after you for years already. I'm stronger and more powerful than you are. This is my home, my palace, my city, _my Oz_… and I will not let you live in it for a clock-tick longer!"

With that, she suddenly snatched a shard of glass from the shattered potion vial off the floor. Before Elphaba, who was just scrambling back to her feet, could so much as turn around, Morrible raised the sharp piece of glass high up into the air.

With a raged scream, she plunged the shard deep between Elphaba's shoulder blades.

* * *

"Faster!" Glinda yelled at her bubble, though of course that hardly had any effect at all. She tried to make it go faster with her magic, but she wasn't focused enough and she grated her teeth in frustration.

"Calm down," Cohvu said, massaging her tense shoulders. "It'll be okay, Glinda, really."

"Glin," said Fiyero, "I still wish you'd just turn around and go back. Are you sure you want to do this?"

"If you only came along to try and convince me that I should not help my best friend, I'm going to open my bubble below your feet and drop you twenty metres to the ground," she snapped at him. Cohvu gently pulled her back to keep her from flying at the prince's throat.

Glinda, however, wasn't done yelling at Fiyero just yet. "You're supposed to help me, Fiyero!" she shouted at him.

"And I'm going to," he said, looking a bit taken aback by her violent reaction. "I just don't see why –"

She yanked herself free from Cohvu's grip and slapped the Vinkun prince.

"Because the woman you love is in danger," she hissed, her face very close to his. "She might be hurt – maybe even dead already. She never fully healed from her injuries in the first place. Can you honestly look me in the eye right now and tell me that you do not care?"

He opened his mouth to reply, but she shook her head.

"Don't," she said. "Never mind. I don't want to hear the answer."

She leant back against Cohvu, unable to look at Fiyero any longer. The former Gale Force guard put his arms around her and dropped a kiss to the top of her head, and Glinda closed her eyes for a brief moment, taking deep breaths, in and out, until she felt a bit calmer again.

She steered the bubble to the Emerald Palace, where she knew Elphaba would be.

"What is our best shot?" she asked, biting her lip worriedly. "Where do you think she went?"

"She went to find Morrible, right?" Cohvu said and he shared a look with the blonde. "The throne room."

Glinda immediately moved in the direction of the balcony attached to said room and she flew in through the open window, landing at the same moment she made the bubble disappear. What she saw inside, however, filled her with terror.

"No," she whispered incredulously.

Elphaba was lying on the floor in a pool of blood, gasping for air. Morrible was standing over her, a bloody and sharp shard of glass in her hand and a smug expression on her face. Neither of them saw Glinda, Cohvu, and Fiyero.

"It's over, dearie," Morrible hissed, nudging Elphaba with her foot. "You're done for."

"Maybe," Elphaba rasped, raising her head just the tiniest bit to glare at the older woman. "But so are you."

She chanted softly, speaking only a few more words to finish the spell she had initially started; and with a scream, Morrible suddenly collapsed on the floor next to the green girl, dead.

Glinda, Cohvu, and Fiyero could only stand there and watch for a few moments. Glinda had both hands clasped over her mouth in horror and Cohvu looked pale.

Fiyero looked at the scene before him – the Witch lying on the floor in a puddle of her own blood, the old fish-like woman standing over her before suddenly falling down as she died… and he felt strange.

Then the young witch on the floor suddenly looked up at him weakly, their eyes met, and it felt like he was struck by lightning.

"Fae," he whispered.

That, somehow, snapped Glinda out of her fear-induced state.

"Are you _serious_?!" she yelled at him, her voice laced with frustration, pain, and fear as she turned to the prince. "_Now_ you remember? It's too late, Fiyero!"

Cohvu placed a calming hand on her shoulder. "Glin…"

"She's going to _die_!" Glinda screamed at Fiyero, tears now welling up in her eyes and spilling over, streaming down her face. "She's going to die and it's going to be your fault! If you just _remembered_, none of this would have happened!"

Fiyero looked like he was about to be sick and Cohvu gently pulled the blonde girl back.

"It wasn't his fault, Glin, you know that," he said softly to her. "He was under a spell."

Glinda suddenly deflated and sagged against Cohvu, sobbing. "Elphie…"

"She's not dead yet," Cohvu reminded them both. He wanted to say something else, but his remark had the effect of a dropped bomb – Glinda and Fiyero both shot over to the green girl faster than he could blink, falling down on their knees next to Elphaba.

"Elphie," Glinda cried, taking one of her friend's hands. "I'm so sorry…"

"It's okay, Fae," Fiyero told the dark-haired witch, but his voice broke. "You're going to be okay."

Her eyelids fluttered open when she heard his voice and she looked at him, her dark eyes filled with confusion.

"Fi-Fiyero?" she asked and his heart broke at how weak she sounded.

"It's me," he confirmed, stroking her hair. A single tear escaped his eye and fell down his cheek. "I'm back. I'm so sorry, Fae…"

She closed her eyes for a moment when she felt his tear hit her cheek. She opened them again and looked at him, and Fiyero could see the pain in her eyes.

"I hoped you wouldn't," she croaked.

"Wouldn't what?" he whispered, fearing he already knew the answer.

She looked at him sadly. "Remember."

It felt like his heart was being torn from his chest and he had difficulty breathing. He hadn't been there for her. She had gone through all these things – she thought she'd lost him, she'd come up with this crazy plan and there were so many other things that had happened to her and that he didn't even know about… because he hadn't been there. It must have torn her apart. And now he was back and he was on the verge of losing her forever.

"Guys," Cohvu interrupted them sharply. "Can we do this later? We need to get Elphaba to a hospital _right now_."

"No." Elphaba shook her head weakly. "No… hospital."

"I'm not listening to you, Elphie." Glinda wiped away her tears and carefully created a bubble around all three of them, lifting it up into the air. Elphaba whimpered in pain and Fiyero helped her turn onto her side, feeling nauseous again when he saw the ragged wound in her back. It was just to the right of her spine, which meant Morrible probably hadn't hit her heart or any nerves… but still. What vital organs could be hit? He couldn't remember, he was too panicked. There was so much blood…

"Come on, Elphie," Glinda whispered, looking at her friend. "Hold on."

She knew she couldn't take Elphaba to a regular hospital – no-one would want to help the Wicked Witch of the West – so she steered the bubble in the direction of the nearest Animal hideout she knew of. By bubble, it should only take a few minutes. She hoped Elphaba could hold on that long… but what if they did make it? Would the Animal doctors there be able to help her?

Fiyero was still stroking the young witch's hair. "Just stay with us, alright, Fae? Come on, you can do it," he encouraged her. "Stay with me."

Her eyes were fluttering shut, however, no matter how hard she fought to keep them open. "Yero…"

"Come on, Fae, you can do it," he whispered, leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead. "Please… I can't lose you. I love you…"

She didn't reply and Fiyero looked down at her fearfully, trying to see if her chest was still moving. It was, but only faintly. He felt nauseous, his throat constricted. "Fae? Please, sweetheart, just hold on." He reached out to touch her cheek.

That was when she stopped breathing.

* * *

**BOW BEFORE YOUR QUEEN OF CLIFFIES! *cackles maniacally* ALL HAIL THE QUEEN!**


	27. Chapter 27

**AN: I know guys, I know - sorry! I promised I'd update every day, and I didn't yesterday. I was going to, last night, but I turned out going to bed early with a headache and so I didn't update this story or my blog. I'll make it up by updating twice today - and trust me, after the next chapter, you'll love me again!**

**A day late now, but this chapter is for Humole. Happy late birthday to you! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 27.**

Fiyero's panicked, "Fae?!" made Glinda and Cohvu look back at him. Cohvu inhaled sharply when he realised what was going on and Glinda's eyes were wide.

"Fiyero?" she whispered.

"She's not breathing," the prince choked out. He was still holding Elphaba, still stroking her hair, his movements almost desperate. He pressed his fingers to her neck in search of a heartbeat, but found none.

Cohvu knelt down on Elphaba's other side, feeling for a pulse as well and trying to remember everything he had learnt during his Gale Force training. "I think she's in shock," he said as he pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around the dark-haired witch, trying to rub some warmth into her. He pressed his fingers tighter to her neck and exhaled slowly.

"It's weak," he said, looking up at Fiyero. "But it's there. She's not dead yet."

Fiyero hardly dared to hope. Cohvu leant over Elphaba and brought his face close to hers, trying to determine if she was breathing. He barely caught the faint wisp of air escaping her lips, but it was there and that was the most important thing.

"Are we there yet?" he asked Glinda, who pointed at a spot in the forest below them.

"It's not far now," she said. "Is she…"

"She's alive," Cohvu confirmed. "For now."

It didn't take them more than a few minutes before Glinda started descending. Some of the Animals gathered on the square, where Glinda's bubble was headed. As soon as they were in earshot, Glinda shouted down, "We need a doctor!", at which one or two Animals immediately took off, probably to the hospital.

The Darners were among the Animals in the square and Myrie and her mate immediately stepped forward when Glinda landed, their eyes wide.

"Elphaba," the Lion breathed and Myrie carefully padded closer.

"Is she…"

"Not yet," Cohvu said grimly.

The two Lions looked up and then gasped collectively. "_Fiyero_?!"

"You're alive?" Myrie's mate asked incredulously.

"Thanks to Elphaba's spell," Glinda answered for the prince. "It worked, only she didn't know about that until recently, and then… well, a lot of things happened, but the most important thing right now is that Elphie was stabbed by Morrible and she needs a doctor _fast _or she's going to die," she rambled nervously, clearly on the verge of having an emotional breakdown, and Cohvu placed his arm around her waist in an attempt to calm her down.

Just then, three Animals came running their way – Doctor Dillamond, along with Doctor Reng and Doctor Lotin, the Hare and the Gorilla Elphaba and Fiyero had gotten to know during their stay in this particular hideout.

Fiyero was grateful for the fact that even though it was obvious they were surprised at seeing Fiyero alive and Elphaba hurt, they didn't ask any questions. Instead, Lotin ordered for two other Animals to get a stretcher from the hospital so that they could transport Elphaba there, while Dillamond and Reng immediately started examining the green girl. The medical jargon passing between them, though, did nothing to reassure Fiyero.

"Punctured lung?"

"I'm not sure. It's not a clean cut and there's a lot of blood."

"We need to get her to the hospital as soon as possible, before she bleeds out."

"I agree. Lilah!" Reng called for the young Rabbit. "Run back to the hospital and prepare a room for surgery. Make sure everything is ready for a blood transfusion," he ordered, at which Lilah nodded and ran off.

Fiyero, meanwhile, had gone pale. "Blood transfusion?"

"We need someone with the same blood type," Reng said, looking at Dillamond, who shook his head.

"There's no time to test everyone," he said worriedly. "She needs that transfusion _now_."

Glinda, who had been burying her face in Cohvu's shoulder, now turned around, her face streaked with tears. "I have the same blood type."

The doctors both looked surprised. "You do?"

She nodded. "We had to test our blood types in Biology class once," she said in a small voice. "Elphie's and mine were exactly the same." She remembered squealing over that fact, throwing her arms around Elphaba and declaring that the universe had simply _meant _for them to become 'bestest friends', because this was the biggest coincidence _ever_. Elphaba had just rolled her eyes and told the blonde that it was exactly that – a coincidence – but Glinda had been absolutely certain that it must be fate.

Dillamond nodded and Reng rose to his feet. "Come with me," he ordered, beckoning Glinda, who followed him. Cohvu looked between her and Fiyero, unsure of what to do, before he followed the blonde girl.

The two other Animals had meanwhile returned with a stretcher and Dillamond and Dr. Lotin carefully placed Elphaba on it. Her eyelids moved and she moaned in pain, but didn't move again or make another sound as the stretcher was lifted off the floor and the Animals slowly, gingerly, started carrying it over towards the hospital.

Fiyero followed, trailing behind as the doctors took Elphaba to a room in the back. Glinda was already sitting in another room with a needle in her arm and Cohvu by her side, and so Fiyero just paced up and down the waiting room, biting his lip and running his fingers through his hair.

It was all his fault. If he hadn't sent Elphaba off on that horse and went to help with the battle, that day near the Emerald City, this wouldn't have happened. He should just have gone with her, gotten her to safety. He shouldn't have let Morrible capture him. He shouldn't have let her spell affect him. He should have _remembered_.

Suddenly desperate for some air, he went outside again, only to find himself cornered by a small group of Animals, Myrie among them, who were curious about what had happened, how Elphaba had gotten hurt, and how Fiyero himself was still alive. He answered their questions as best he could, his eyes continuously returning to the hospital door, even though he knew rationally that there couldn't be any news yet. Dillamond had already warned him that this was going to be a risky operation that needed a lot of time and attention. It could take hours.

He returned to the waiting room. Myrie kept him company for a while, until Glinda and Cohvu returned. The three of them just sat there, none of them speaking, all lost in their own thoughts. Glinda was still looking pale and there were traces of her tears still lingering on her cheeks. Cohvu had his arm around her and she was leaning into him, her eyes closed and her head on his shoulder, as he held her and rubbed her back in an attempt to comfort her. Fiyero himself just leant his head back and stared at the ceiling, getting up every now and then to pace the room for a while until sitting back down again, ever restless.

What if she didn't make it?

He couldn't imagine his life without her. He really couldn't. He knew that if she died, he could never be happy with someone else – he couldn't even see himself _talking _to anyone else. Glinda had told him about the state she had found Elphaba in when she had visited the green girl at Kiamo Ko, and Fiyero understood. When she thought he was dead, she focused all her energy on the one thing she knew still needed to happen – killing Morrible – and after that, she just didn't care what happened to her anymore.

If Elphaba died, Fiyero didn't even have something to focus on, to channel his emotions into. Without her, his life would be grey and dark and meaningless.

Would he kill himself? Maybe. He wasn't sure if he could. There was still Glinda, and his parents – they would be devastated, Glinda even more so than she already would be because of her best friend's death. There were still people who cared…

Maybe he could help the Animals integrate into society again, now that Morrible was gone and the province leaders of Oz were going to choose a new ruler. He felt like he'd owe that to her. She had worked so hard, done so much good, for the Animals. Maybe he could do something now, too, and after that…

He didn't know. He just didn't know. Even picturing her dying right now was unbearably painful; and if he tried to look into the future, a future without her, all he saw was a gigantic black hole.

They waited for hours and hours, but it felt like days to them. Glinda eventually dozed off against Cohvu's side, only to shoot back up with an anguished cry or whimper every few minutes, nightmares about her best friend dying haunting her.

Fiyero wanted more than anything else to sleep, to sink into oblivion if only for a few moments; but the moment he closed his eyes, all he could see was blood, drops, then puddles, then pools of blood, and so he forced himself to stay awake.

Every time they heard footsteps, they all tensed up, exchanging looks that were mostly fearful, but also just the tiniest bit hopeful. There was never any news, though. Sometimes it was an Animal from the village, coming to inquire about Elphaba's current state. Sometimes it was the young Rabbit, Lilah, who ran back and forth a few times with supplies.

When Doctor Lotin finally did appear, they all sat up and looked at him, their faces filled with terror and anticipation.

The doctor smiled wearily. "I can't say anything yet," he said apologetically, running a hand over his face in a tired gesture. "We performed surgery on her, which went fairly well. She got a blood transfusion and we tried to repair the internal damage that has been done. It looks relatively good now, but she's not out of danger yet – whatever it was she was stabbed with cut pretty deep, and hit her lung… she got lucky, though. The damage could have been much worse – she could have died instantly." He looked at them all. "For now, all we can do is wait," he said. "She could still go either way at this point. We'll know more if she wakes up."

"If?" Glinda croaked, picking up on the meaning of that; and Lotin nodded with a half apologetic and half sympathetic smile.

"Yes," he said. "If."

Glinda hid her face in Cohvu's shoulder again. Fiyero looked at the doctor.

"Can we see her?"

Lotin hesitated for a moment.

"Very briefly," he finally replied. "And you have to be calm and quiet. Doctor Dillamond is with her now and he's going to stay with her for as long as necessary."

They all nodded and followed the doctor to a room in the back. Dillamond looked up when he heard them enter, but none of them paid him any mind.

Fiyero's heart broke at the sight of her lying in that bed, on her side as to keep any pressure off her wound, looking incredibly thin and small between all those white blankets. Beside him, Glinda stifled a sob and Cohvu put his arms around her, looking at Elphaba over the blonde's shoulder.

Fiyero slowly approached the bed, examining her more closely. She was so thin he could count her ribs through the flimsy fabric of the hospital gown. There were dark circles under her eyes. Her breathing came in short, ragged gasps, and she looked unsettled – restless, like she was in pain even when she was still unconscious.

"Fae…" he whispered, reaching out to touch her hair and run his fingers over it. He had to stifle a sob of his own at the mere sight of her like this. "I'm so sorry… please be alright."

"I'm sorry, you have to go now," Doctor Lotin said softly. "She needs as much rest as possible."

Glinda nodded, whispered a goodbye to her friend and left with Cohvu. Fiyero pressed a soft kiss to Elphaba's temple before following them.

All they could do now was wait and hope.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28.**

"How has she been holding up?" Fiyero asked, his voice sounding not at all like his own. "When I… when I didn't remember? When she thought I was… dead?"

Glinda sighed, heavily leaning against Cohvu. "Fiyero…"

"I want to know," he said. "I want to know what I did to her."

"You didn't do anything," Cohvu said. "It was Morrible, you know that. It wasn't your fault."

Fiyero, however, was stubborn. "I still want to know."

"I don't think you do, Fiyero," Glinda whispered, closing her eyes for a moment. "I really don't think you do."

His stomach clenched. "That bad?"

She sighed once more, after which she opened her eyes and told him in what state she had found Elphaba at Kiamo Ko that day and everything the green girl had said and done afterwards.

She could tell Fiyero only felt more horrible after that and she looked away, unable to watch the guilt and pain in his eyes. "I told you you didn't want to know," she muttered.

They sat in silence for only a few moments before Fiyero abruptly rose to his feet and strode to the back of the building, to where Elphaba was. Glinda cried for him to stop and Cohvu called his name, but he ignored them both, stalking into the room.

Doctor Dillamond looked up and immediately rose to his feet, looking concerned. "Fiyero," he began, gently but firmly, "you can't be in here –"

"She needs rest," Fiyero cut him off. "I know. I'll be quiet, I promise."

Dillamond already started shaking his head, but again Fiyero interrupted him before he could even open his mouth to speak.

"Please?" he choked out. "I can't… I mean, I have to…" He swallowed. "I… I can't be away from her. Not now."

The Goat was about to refuse, but then he saw the look on the prince's face and he sighed, relenting.

"Alright," he said. "But you really do have to be calm. Do not try to wake her, do not talk. I'd prefer it if you didn't even move. She needs all the rest she can get."

Fiyero nodded and gave the doctor a grateful look as he took a chair on Elphaba's other side, taking her hand in his and rubbing gentle circles on the back of it with his thumb.

Sitting there, looking at her still form and pale face and thinking about what Glinda just told him about her, he felt a pang of guilt and regret. He knew Cohvu was right. He knew it wasn't his fault that Morrible's spell had altered his memories… and yet he still felt guilty. She had needed him more than ever in the past six weeks and he hadn't been there for her. And now she might never wake up again. He might never have another chance to tell her how much he loved her, or that he was sorry…

What if she died?

He let go of her hand and buried his head in his arms, the tears he had been holding back suddenly filling his eyes. He barely noticed Dillamond quietly getting up to give the prince some privacy, nor the hoof the doctor placed on his shoulder in a sign of comfort before he left the room.

He eventually fell asleep with his arms on the edge of the bed, his head resting on his arms. Doctors Reng, Lotin, and Dillamond all came in every fifteen minutes or so to check up on Elphaba, but there was no change. Cohvu and Glinda came in one more time, too, to see their friend; but Lotin told them quietly that it could be a few more days until Elphaba would wake up and it would be best if they'd just find themselves a place to stay, eat something, and get some rest. He promised them they could come see Elphaba again later that day.

Evening fell, and there was no change in Elphaba's condition. Fiyero was awake again by now and holding Elphaba's hand once more as he pondered everything they had been through together and everything he should have done differently.

He knew he shouldn't dwell on things that had happened in the past. He couldn't change them anymore now, anyway. And yet still he couldn't help but think of what would have happened if he had kissed her in that clearing, the day with the Lion cub. If he had travelled with her and Glinda that day to the Emerald City. If he had gone to rescue Glinda as soon as he found out she was in Southstairs, if he hadn't sent Elphaba off on her own so that he could play hero in the battle, if he hadn't been taken captive and let Morrible put a spell on him… would she be okay now?

He was shaken from his thoughts when he noticed a tiny movement from the corners of his eyes. He instantly stiffened and stared at Elphaba's face intently.

Her eyelids fluttered.

He swore his heart stopped for a moment and he reached out to touch her cheek. "Fae?" he whispered, hardly daring to hope.

Her eyelids fluttered again. A small frown creased her forehead and she stirred – ever so slightly, but he noticed it.

"Doctor!" he immediately shouted, at which Reng and Dillamond both came running into the room, their faces anxious.

"What's going on?" Reng asked tensely and Fiyero pointed at her face.

"She… she's waking up," he choked out.

He was immediately chased out of the room as the doctors poured over her. He paced the hallway anxiously, never taking his gaze off the doorway behind which Reng and Dillamond were hopefully working their magic. What would happen now? What _could _happen? Could she still die, or was she out of danger now? What if she was permanently hurt? Paralysed?

He knew she would hate it, but he would still love her. Of course he would. He would take her back to the Vinkus with him and he would take care of her for the rest of his life, because he loved her more than he had ever loved anything or anyone, and he would do anything for her. She'd feel trapped and weak and she'd probably lash out at him, but he didn't care. He would help her in any way he could. It didn't matter – not to him. Not so long as she lived. Oz, he hoped she lived...

Reng eventually exited the room, holding open the door for Fiyero.

"She's awake," he said with a tired smile. "You can see her now, if you like."

Fiyero shot into the room faster than an arrow from a bowstring.

Dillamond was still there, adjusting something on the IV they had plugged into Elphaba's arm. She was still lying on her side, her face was still pale, and she still looked horrible… but her eyes were open now.

When he stormed into the room, she raised her gaze to meet his and her eyes widened in surprise.

"Yero," she breathed.

He sank down in the chair next to her bed again, cupping her face with both hands and kissing her forehead. He didn't even realise he was crying until he saw his own tears dripping down onto her face.

"Thank Oz you're okay," he choked out. "I… I thought… they said… and all the blood…"

She blinked slowly at him. "So you…" She was struggling to speak, he could tell, but of course she was too stubborn to just shut up and rest. "You do remember?"

He nodded. "I do. Fae…" he whispered. "I'm so sorry."

"I thought I dreamt it…" She closed her eyes for a moment, but then opened them again. "That you remember."

He shook his head. "You didn't dream," he said, brushing her hair away from her face. "That wasn't a dream, sweetheart. I do remember. I'm so sorry I didn't before, but I do now, and you're going to be just fine. Okay? You're going to be alright."

He looked up at Dillamond. "She _is _going to be alright, isn't she?" he asked the doctor fearfully, but Dillamond smiled at him.

"Most likely," he agreed. "It's looking good, though it will be a long road towards recovery and she's going to need lots of rest."

Fiyero nodded. With a pang he remembered the last time she had needed to rest – after her fall from her broom, a few months ago… when she had been away with Dawyn. He remembered that she was dead now and the fresh tears welling up in his eyes were for her as much as they were for Elphaba.

He remembered the two of them scouting together, Dawyn saving Elphaba's life and bringing her back, the way he and the Jaguar had watched over their favourite green girl together… right before everything had fallen apart.

But it would be fixed now. It had to be. There was no way to bring back Dawyn or any of the other Animals that had died; but the Wizard and Morrible were both dead while Glinda, Elphaba, and he himself were still alive. That had to count for something, right? They could start over. Somehow, they would be okay.

Elphaba had drifted off to sleep – or so Dillamond assured him – and Fiyero stayed with her, holding her hand and stroking her hair. Doctor Reng went to alert Glinda and Cohvu, who appeared in the doorway about half an hour later.

"Is she…" Glinda began anxiously, but Dillamond reassured her.

"She's asleep," he said. "She's been awake and responsive – she's doing great. All her body needs now is enough time and rest to heal."

Just then, Elphaba's eyes opened again, slowly. When she saw her friend standing there, she managed a weak smile.

"Hey, Glin."

Glinda instantly burst into tears at that and Cohvu had to hold her back to keep her from throwing herself onto her best friend in a giant, bone-crushing hug. "Elphie!"

"Calm down, Glinda," Cohvu told her sternly. "She's still very severely injured, remember? No hugging. No squealing. She needs rest."

Elphaba chuckled softly, but winced when a stab of pain shot through her. Fiyero brought their joined hands up to his lips and kissed the back of her hand.

"Careful," he said softly.

Dillamond allowed Glinda to gently hug her friend, but then ushered her and Cohvu out of the room again. He chased Fiyero away from his seat to perform some tests on Elphaba, listening to her heartbeat and breathing and shining into her eyes with a light. Apparently satisfied with what he found, he looked at her.

"Sleep," he ordered. "I do not want you to take this lightly, Elphaba. No forcing yourself to stay awake in order to talk to Glinda and Fiyero, no sitting up or even _moving_, really; and preferably no talking. Just sleep. Alright?"

She opened her mouth to reply, but he cut her off sternly. "That wasn't a question, Elphaba."

She closed her mouth again and Dillamond narrowed his eyes at her. "So not like last time," he warned her.

She nodded and he left the room again. Fiyero looked at the young witch in the bed. He could see the sadness in her eyes at the memory of 'last time'; and he stroked her cheek.

"I'm so sorry about Dawyn, sweetheart," he said softly. "I know how close you were and how much it must hurt you to have lost her… and then me, too. But I'm back now, and I'm not going anywhere this time. I promise. We'll get through this – together."

"Okay," she whispered.

He wrapped his arms around her as best as he could, nuzzling her hair. She closed her eyes and soon drifted off again.

* * *

**I hope you're happy, I hope you're happy now...**


	29. Chapter 29

**AN: EEP my battery is running low and my charger is downstairs so a quick update!**

**Only one more chapter to go after this!**

* * *

**Chapter 29.**

Elphaba's recovery was long and slow – much too slow, for her own liking – but every day, she was allowed to do a little bit more and she felt a little bit stronger. Fiyero and Glinda took turns keeping her occupied, talking to her and playing games with her in order to keep her mind off the fact that she was cooped up in a room and not allowed outside. Fiyero fed her, too, in the beginning, which she hated. She was immensely grateful when she was finally allowed to carefully sit up a little and eat by herself.

She and Fiyero also talked a lot. He wouldn't stop apologising to her for not remembering who she was before, no matter how many times Elphaba waved him off. She told him time after time that it hadn't been his fault, but Morrible's; but he wouldn't listen to her. Not until she finally snapped at him.

"_Stop this_, Fiyero!" she cried, slamming her hands down onto the sheets – an action she instantly regretted when she felt the stab of pain in her upper back, where her wound was, but she did not flinch. "I can't _deal _with this right now, okay? Dawyn is dead, I thought _you _had died and then found you under a spell, and then I almost died myself – not to mention the fact that we killed the Wizard and Morrible and lost so many Animals while doing so… it's almost like a full-blown war. So much has happened, so many things for me to deal with, and I can't take your guilt on top of that. I _can't_. And I know that's selfish of me –"

"It's not," Fiyero cut her off quietly, taking her hand and entwining his fingers with hers. "I understand, sweetheart. I'm sorry."

She glared at him. "Stop apologising. If I hear one more 'sorry' from your lips, I'm going to hex you."

He laughed softly. "I don't think you're in any condition to hex me right now, Fae."

Her glare did not waver. "Watch me."

His laughter died in his throat when he saw the look in her eyes. He suddenly wasn't so sure anymore.

She just smirked and carefully lay back down on her side. Fiyero helped her and then started running his fingers through his hair in an attempt to lull her to sleep.

She was fighting to stay awake, he could tell, despite Doctor Dillamond's warnings; and so he decided to distract her.

"When I was… under Morrible's spell," he said, shifting a little, "Glinda tried to remind me of all the things that happened between the two of us."

She looked up at him, waiting for him to elaborate.

He grinned. "Do you remember your twenty-second birthday?"

She immediately scowled. "You were _such _a prick back then," she exclaimed.

He laughed. "You hated your birthday."

"I still do."

"And I decided to make it the most happy day of your life."

"A very stupid idea, really."

"So I entered the classroom that day, all confident and excited, carrying the hugest gift ever, and I made everyone sing 'Happy Birthday' to you."

She laughed softly. "It was horrible. I still can't believe you did that. Did you know me at all back then?"

"We had only been together for a few weeks," he protested. "I know we were friends before, but I didn't know you _that _well… I just figured that you hated your birthday and you spent most of your life being lonely, not having any friends and with a family that could not exactly be called warm… so I wanted to make that day special for you."

"And so you had the whole class sing for me and _kissed me _in front of all of them," she concluded dryly.

He grimaced. "In hindsight, it might not have been one of my better ideas." It was true what Glinda had told him – Elphaba hadn't spoken to him again the rest of the day. "You did forgive me, though."

"Only because that huge gift you dragged into the classroom turned out to be a collection of rare books."

"And do you remember our one-month anniversary?"

He talked to her about other memories, too, until her eyelids started drooping and she finally stopped fighting sleep.

"Yero?"

He stroked her hair. "Yeah?"

Her eyes half-opened. "I didn't hate my twenty-second birthday," she mumbled. "I just… couldn't believe anyone would do that for me. I thought you had some ulterior motive. But… I think that was the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me."

He smiled and kissed her softly. "I love you, Fae."

"Mm," she murmured, already half asleep. "Love you, too."

It was about an hour later that Glinda poked her head around the door. "Fiyero?" she whispered.

He looked up from where he had been staring at Elphaba's face and blinked a few times. "Yeah?"

She hesitated. "You, um… you have… visitors."

Fiyero frowned. "What?"

Before he could say anything else, however, someone pushed past her and into the room. Fiyero's eyes widened when he saw who it was.

"Dad?!"

"Fiyero," King Hamold began loudly, "what in the name of Oz –"

"Shh!" Fiyero hissed. Upon seeing his father's confused look, he indicated the sleeping witch in the bed beside him. "If you wake her, I'll kill you."

Hamold frowned. "But…"

"Fiyero?" Lori entered, her entire face filling with relief when she saw him. "Sweet Oz, Fiyero, we were so worried." She glanced over at Elphaba. "Is she alright?"

Fiyero nodded. "She will be."

"Good." Lori smiled and moved over to hug her son. "It's good to see you back, Fiyero." She reached out to gently smooth some hair away from Elphaba's face, looking at the green girl sympathetically. "What happened?"

Fiyero took his parents outside, asking Glinda to keep an eye on Elphaba for him, and he explained to them everything that had happened since the moment he, Glinda, and Cohvu had left.

When he finished, Hamold was still scowling. "You're saying they were telling the truth?" he asked. "Glinda and Elphaba? When they were with us?"

Fiyero nodded. "They were. Morrible did put a spell on me, and it wasn't until I saw Fae almost die that I remembered again." He looked down in shame. "If only I'd remembered sooner…"

Lori placed a hand on his shoulder. "It worked out well in the end," she said softly. "That's what matters. Elphaba will be alright, you said so yourself."

He nodded, swallowing his guilt. "Yeah."

"Fiyero?" Glinda appeared in the doorway. "She's awake."

He sighed irritably. "_Again_?! She should be sleeping longer than just an hour each time," he grumbled under his breath even as he walked over to Glinda. "Why can't she just listen to the doctor and _rest_?"

Glinda was looking at him with wide eyes. "She didn't tell you?"

He blinked. "Didn't tell me what?"

Glinda bit her lip. Then she sighed and said, "Fiyero… she's been having nightmares."

"What?"

The blonde nodded. "Ever since… since the battle," she said softly. "Since Dawyn's death, and since you were captured by Morrible. She tried to hide them from me at first, too, but I noticed once when we were staying at Adurin Iir, and again when I sat with her here in the hospital. She's been dreaming about the Animals, about Dawyn's death and about you, for two months already."

Fiyero ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "Why didn't she tell me?" he demanded.

Glinda just gave him a look. "Really?"

He sighed. He knew the answer to that question just as well as Glinda did – she didn't want to worry him. She would always keep these things hidden from him because she hated to see him worry about her when there was, in her eyes, no reason to.

He brushed past Glinda and went back into Elphaba's room, scowling at her when he saw her awake. "You should have told me."

She looked confused for just a moment before sighing glumly. "Glinda."

"You've really been having nightmares for two months already?!" he demanded, sitting down in the chair by her bed. She didn't meet his eyes, but she did nod.

He shook his head. "Oz, Fae…" He cupped her face with one hand so that she would look at him. "I don't want you to go through those things alone," he said softly. "I love you, Fae. You can talk to me. You can always talk to me, about anything. Come here." He climbed into the bed beside her and pulled her into his arms, guiding her head to rest on his chest. He pressed a kiss to her temple. "Now sleep. And next time you have a nightmare, I want you to tell me. Okay?"

"Okay," she whispered, too tired to even protest.

He smiled and planted a kiss on her shoulder. "Good girl."

"Don't treat me like a dog."

He chuckled. "Go to sleep, sweetheart."

By the time Glinda came back in to check on her friends, Elphaba had fallen asleep in Fiyero's arms and he had drifted off as well, his face buried in her hair. Glinda smiled at the adorable picture they made.

Hamold suddenly appeared beside her, peering at the couple over the blonde girl's shoulder.

"I guess I owe her an apology," he said reluctantly.

Glinda nodded, raising her chin as she met his eyes. "I believe you do."

"And I owe you one, too."

"I should think so."

"And probably Fiyero as well."

She patted his shoulder. "You're learning, Your Majesty."

Lori, who was behind her husband, laughed at that. "Oh, Hamold…" She laid her hand on his arm. "I understand you were confused, darling," she said softly. "I do. After everything that happened… but surely you must believe _now _that Elphaba and Glinda were telling the truth all along. Our son loves her, Hamold. You can't look at that," she nodded towards the sleeping couple, "and not see that."

Hamold sighed, his shoulders slumping. "You're right." He turned towards Glinda. "I'm sorry."

She acknowledged him with a small inclination of her head. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

He slowly entered the room and stood there looking at Elphaba and Fiyero for a while before sinking down into a chair, never taking his eyes off them. Lori went to stand behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Do you…" Hamold swallowed. "Do you think he's happy?"

"Look closer," his wife advised him.

He did. He saw the way Fiyero's arms were wrapped around Elphaba protectively. He saw the way his son was nuzzling the girl's hair and the small smile on his face, even in his sleep.

He nodded reluctantly. "I guess he is."

"That doesn't mean he doesn't care about us, Hamold," said Lori softly. "We're his parents. His family. He loves us."

"He just loves her more." It was a statement, not a question; but Lori shook her head.

"Not necessarily," she said gently. "Think about this, Hamold. We've always had each other. He hasn't been living at home with us for more than a few weeks ever since he went to his first university, and he knew we'd manage without him. Elphaba was all alone. I don't think he loves her more than he loves us, per se; I just think he realised that she needed him more than we did, and that is why he chose her over us back then."

Hamold blinked. "I… never thought about that."

Lori smiled. "I figured as much." She kissed his cheek. "We're his parents, darling. Of course he loves us. You shouldn't resent him for leaving us to be with her – you should be proud of him… and of yourself. It means we raised him well."

They left the room not long thereafter. Some Animals showed them the way to a place they could stay for the time being and they stayed there, too, for a few more days, until Doctor Dillamond said that Elphaba was allowed to get up – carefully. When Lori asked him if the young witch was also allowed to travel, he hesitantly consented.

"Good," Lori said when she heard that.

Fiyero looked at her questioningly. "Why is that good?" he wanted to know. "Why did you ask in the first place? Where should she go?"

The queen squeezed her son's shoulder and then looked at Elphaba.

"Elphaba," she said. "Would you like to come back to the Vinkus with us?"

The dark-haired witch spluttered weakly. "What?"

"Fiyero is our son," Lori said simply, "and he loves you. That means you're part of the family now, sweetheart. We'd like to take you back to Adurin Iir in order to provide you with the best medical care possible. We'd also like your advice on some things – mainly the question of who the new ruler of Oz should be. I think your university major in politics could be of much help there."

Elphaba's eyes were wide. "I never finished that degree," she reminded the queen, her voice a bit high in mild panic. "I defied the Wizard before I could finish it. I couldn't help you!"

"Of course you can," said Lori confidently. "I have faith in you. You're smart, Elphaba."

Fiyero squeezed the green girl's hand. "We don't have to go if you don't want to," he said.

She looked at him. "Even if I don't go, you still can," she reminded him.

He just scowled. "Without you?"

"They're your parents," she began, but he cut her off.

"Not a chance. You know that. Either we're both going or we're both staying here, Fae. It's your call."

She looked at Lori worriedly. "You really wouldn't mind?"

The queen laughed. "Would I offer if we'd mind?" she asked. She smiled at the young witch. "We'd love to have you, Elphaba. Really. Like I said – you're part of the family now. Both Hamold and I would like to get to know you better and to provide you with the best possible care while you heal."

"Um…" Elphaba bit her lip. She'd love to go to the Vinkus with Fiyero and his family, but she couldn't help but feel like she'd be imposing herself on them.

Fiyero, as usual correctly reading her mind, answered for her. "She'd like that."

Lori chuckled. "Would she?"

"She would," Fiyero declared, "but she's being silly because she doesn't want to burden you. I know that look on her face."

Elphaba scowled at him. He returned her scowl with a smug look.

"Am I wrong?" he asked.

She pressed her lips together and looked away, and he chuckled.

"We'll come with you," he told his mother.

Lori smiled. "Good." She rose to her feet. "I'm going to tell Hamold we're going home."


	30. Chapter 30

**AN: Here it is, people - the final chapter of WLL and the final thing I'll post before my epic London trip! I'll be leaving in about two hours and I can't wait :). I'll give you all a giant blog post when I come back.**

**I hope you like this ending (partly presented to me by Humole). I'll start posting my Fiyeraba Titanic fic probably soon after I get back.**

**Kudos to Woodland59 for being my 400th reviewer - thank you so much! :D**

* * *

**Chapter 30.**

Being back at Adurin Iir was harder on Elphaba than she had expected it to be.

When Fiyero, Lori, and Glinda were helping her up to her room – Hamold and Cohvu had stayed behind to help with the luggage – the raven-haired witch froze in the hallway, staring into one of the rooms. Fiyero was confused, but Glinda immediately seemed to get it.

"Elphie," she said softly.

Elphaba blinked and shook her head. "I'm fine."

But all she could think of was that that had been the room she had stayed in before – the room she had hardly slept in, the room in which she had spent hours and hours searching through spell books and later making the potion for Morrible, and the room in which she'd had nightmares every time she _had _slept.

Passing Fiyero's bedroom was perhaps even harder. She had first seen him again in that very room, after she thought he had died… despite what Glinda and Lori had told her, she'd been so hopeful. She hadn't truly believed that he wouldn't recognise her… that he'd be scared of her. She had only been able to think of the fact that he was alive. And then her hopes had been crushed – right there in that room. And again after that true love's kiss didn't work – because even though she hadn't _really _believed in it, she had still been hopeful. Again. And again her hopes were crushed.

"Elphie," Glinda said again, taking her friend's hand in her own. "It's okay."

She hadn't even realised there were tears in her eyes until now. She sniffled.

"I'm sorry," she said. "It's just…"

"I know." Glinda hugged her gingerly. "And I know it hurts to think of it. But it's okay now, Elphie. He's okay."

"I know," Elphaba said softly, but she still could not take her eyes off the room.

"Fae," Fiyero said quietly, touching her chin and turning her head to make her look at him. "It's okay. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere now."

His only warning was another small sniffle from her and then she suddenly started sobbing – desperate, heart-wrenching sobs that racked her entire body. Fiyero was completely startled by it, but he immediately folded her into his arms, holding her as tightly as he could without hurting her. He exchanged a look with his mother and Glinda over her head and they both gave him sympathetic smiles before discreetly leaving the two of them alone.

She cried for a long time. When she finally did calm down, she refused to talk to him; and so he just led her to her room, helped her get into the bed, and climbed onto the other side of the bed beside her. He knew she would talk to him when she was ready.

She stayed on her side for a while, facing away from him. He thought she had fallen asleep, but then she suddenly spoke.

"I thought I'd lost you."

Her voice was smaller than he had ever heard it, and his heart broke. "Fae…"

"First when Morrible had you," she whispered. "And then again… I was so happy when I found out you were still alive. I wouldn't let myself believe it, but I couldn't help but hope… and then you didn't love me anymore. You didn't even recognise me as anything other than the Wicked Witch of the West… and I thought," she choked on a fresh sob and finally turned around to face him, her eyes swimming with tears, "I thought I'd lost you _again_…"

He drew her into his arms and she buried her face in his neck, crying again. He could feel her wet tears on his skin and he could feel tears pricking his own eyes as well as she cried her heart out into his shoulder. He couldn't even imagine what it must have been like for her.

"I thought I'd lost you, too," he whispered into her hair, closing his eyes for a moment. "When you were in that throne room and I looked at you… I suddenly remembered again. Everything just came back. And all I could think was that just when I remembered, when everything was supposed to be alright again, I could lose _you_ for good. There was so much blood, and then afterwards, on our way to the Animal village… we thought you stopped breathing for a moment there." He swallowed and she tightened her grip on him, still crying herself.

He understood how she must feel. She had been through so much and her emotions had been played with all the time – she'd been freed from Southstairs and reunited with Fiyero, only to find Dawyn and all those Animals dead. She thought Fiyero had died, then he turned out to be alive again, but then she found out he was under a spell. Everything seemed to be going the right way now, but he knew her; and he knew she was afraid that things would go wrong again, simply because she still believed that bad things always happened to her – or maybe _because _of her.

He was determined to prove her wrong, though.

She fell asleep eventually, exhausted by all the emotions coursing through her, with her tears still wet on her cheeks. He wiped them away gently and kissed her hair before tucking her in, holding her in his arms as she slept.

Waking up to his bright blue eyes watching her was something that had previously annoyed her a little – she hated being watched – but now seemed like one of the most wonderful things in the world. So far, she had been so focused on other things – killing Morrible, at first, and later on her revalidation, trying to keep her mind on rest and exercises to keep it from roaming elsewhere. She realised, however, that this – her breaking down – had been a long time coming. She knew Fiyero wouldn't judge her for it, and neither would Glinda or Lori, but she still hated it.

When she awoke, though, and saw the look in his eyes, she nearly started crying all over again. There was so much happiness in that look, so much tenderness, so much love… she couldn't believe she had almost lost him. Twice.

He was already smiling, but when he saw her eyes open, his smile widened. "Good morning, sleeping beauty," he whispered, reaching out to brush some loose strands of hair out of her face. "Did you sleep well?"

She only gave a small nod, not even protesting what he had called her. She burrowed deeper into his arms, hiding her face in his shirt; and he held her tightly.

For the first time in months, she truly felt like things might be okay again.

She knew she and Fiyero would have to talk more. She had already had long and pretty difficult conversations with Glinda, talking about what had happened; she'd talked to Doctor Dillamond and to Myrie when she had still been in the hospital. Lori had come to see her a few times and Hamold had apologised to her for his earlier behaviour. By now she was completely tired of talking, but she knew this conversation with Fiyero was necessary.

It didn't have to happen _now_, though. For now, she was perfectly content just lying in his arms.

He ran his fingers over her hair. "Fae?" he whispered.

"Yeah?"

He pressed a kiss to her hair. "Dawyn would be proud of you," he said softly.

She turned her head to bury her face deeper into his shoulder and they were quiet for a while.

Then she whispered, "Do you remember that time she almost attacked you?"

Fiyero huffed a laugh. "Which time?"

She couldn't help but smile. It was true that Dawyn and Fiyero hadn't really gotten along in the beginning.

"And when she saved my life," Elphaba continued softly. "She saved my life so many times, and yet she always insisted she hadn't repaid her debt to me." Her eyes filled with tears. "Maybe if she'd just left…"

"She chose to stay," Fiyero reminded her, stroking the side of her face. "And you saved her life many times, too, Fae. Don't blame yourself. She was your friend and of course you're sad – I am, too – but I don't want you to blame yourself."

She heaved a shuddering sigh. "I just wish she was still here…"

"I know, sweetheart." He sighed. "Me, too."

"But at least you're back," she whispered. She closed her eyes for a moment. Fiyero tightened his grip on her and leant down to kiss her softly.

The moment was broken by Lori and Hamold, who came into the room. The queen smiled at them both.

"Are you feeling a bit better, Elphaba?" she asked.

The green girl nodded. "I am," she said quietly. "Thank you."

Lori sat down and Hamold took the chair beside hers. "We wanted to talk to you about what is going to happen next."

"We're already working on clearing your name, Elphaba," Hamold said. He had the decency to look sheepish. "I pulled some strings in order to convince the other rulers of the Ozian provinces – consider it my apology to you."

"A new ruler of Oz will be chosen soon," Lori took over again, "and once that is done, and everything has settled down a little… we thought we might have a job you two would like."

The couple looked at her questioningly and she smiled. "Since it has already been decided that the Animal banns will be lifted and some things will be restored to the way they were before the Wizard took power… how would you like to be representing the Animals? As, say, ambassadors?"

"You could defend their rights and help them, the way you have done for the past two years," Hamold added. "It will do your negotiation skills good, too, Yero. Oz knows you don't have many of them and you're going to need them once you take the throne."

Elphaba chortled and Fiyero scowled as his father. "Gee, thanks, Dad."

"Anyway," Lori continued, "we thought it might give you something to do, in preparation of becoming the king and queen of the Vinkus eventually, and we thought you'd like being active in this whole process, given the role you both have played in helping the Animals."

"I'd like that," said Elphaba softly, and Fiyero nodded.

"We'll do it," he said. "Thanks, Mum. You, too, Dad."

"You're welcome," Hamold said. "And I apologise again for… well, everything."

"It's okay," Elphaba said. "I understand. I don't blame you for reacting the way you did."

Fiyero kind of did – a little – but he decided to let it go for Elphaba's sake.

Hamold and Lori left and Elphaba leant back against Fiyero's chest, playing with his fingers. "It will be nice, to be helping them again."

"Yeah." Fiyero smiled. "Just like old times."

She looked up at him. "Yero?"

"Yeah?"

"Your mother said we'd be king and queen of the Vinkus eventually," she began and Fiyero immediately knew what she was hinting at.

"We are," he said, drawing her closer, "because I'm the crown prince, and there's no way I'd ever marry a girl that is not you, Fae. You should know that by now."

She heaved a contented sigh and snuggled up against him. "I love you."

"I love you, too." He dropped a kiss on the top of her head. "Shall we go and get breakfast?"

She looked at him and pictured her life from now on. Dawyn would not be joining them, but at least she and Fiyero could go back to helping the Animals. They'd get more rights and slowly be integrated into society again. The Wizard was dead and so was Morrible, and Oz would be a better place from now on. She and Fiyero would rule the Vinkus one day.

She imagined waking up next to him like this morning every single day, for the rest of her life – getting breakfast together, sleeping together, ruling together, maybe even raising a family together – and she could not imagine anything that would make her happier.

* * *

**EEEEP I'm just so excited :D :D bye bye everyone! :D Until next time!**


End file.
